The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse

by Susanna Davidson, Jacqueline East (Illustrator), Aesop

When country mouse Pipin and his cousin, Toby Town Mouse, visit each other, they discover they prefer very different ways of life, in this story based on one of Aesop's fables.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fairy Tales, Fiction, Animals

48 pages, Hardcover

First published April 27, 2007

About the author

Susanna Davidson also writes as Zanna Davidson.

She joined Usborne Publishing almost straight out of university and has been writing books for them pretty much ever since. She has written about everything from dinosaurs to the Queen to Fairy Ponies and tiny monsters, small enough to fit in your pocket. She is also a mum of two boys and works from home, where she spends most of her time talking to the dog and trying not to eat too much cheese.

Reviews

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was given a free copy for my school library.
It was quick to read this book and easy to follow.

[Wasan · Rating 5 out of 5]

i think this book is fun for all ages . when i were in 6th grade in 2019 me and my bff performed a play based on this book in the class and my teacher loved that😆
the moral of the story is :
it's better to have little and be safe than you have plenty live in fear

[Michael Sorbello · Rating 3 out of 5]

Living in luxury means nothing if you have to sell your freedom, safety and happiness in order to get it.

***

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[Katelyn Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse written by Susanna Davidson and illustrated by Jacqueline East tells the story of two mice from different backgrounds who go to visit on another. This story is a classic retelling of one of Aesops fables, originally from Greece. It offers a classic example of a fable as it uses personified animals, has a clear moral lesson and has a semi-repeating storyline. Many fables are known for using animals with human-like characteristics to represent people. These stories are clearly not real, however the actions often could be, such as in this story, the two mice going to visit one another.
This story has a clear lesson derived from it in the way the characters each wish to go visit the other, but as they spend time in the opposite environment they begin to realize that they prefer where they come from, for example the city mouse is uncomfortable in the country, while the country mouse is uncomfortable in the city. They each leave appreciating the place they live all the more. The repeating action of them visiting each other also contributes to the label of a fable.
This is a story that I would use in my classroom in order to teach the benefit of where we live, and the importance to be content where we’re at. I would want to point out the stereotypes of what a country person is like and what a city person is like, and make sure that my students understand these stereotypes are not necessarily true of every city person or every country person.

[Alex Simkin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m in an unusual position of recommending a story but not a book. I saw a version of this story at my specialist school placement (teaching circa KS1 level), for both English and as a general topic. In that version of the story, the Town Mouse and Country Mouse swap places, finding life to be rather different in new places, before eventually concluding that there’s no place like home. This theme is explored in plenty of other books (for example, Meerkat Mail), but it worked well with this story, as both characters experienced a contrast. This could lend itself to creative writing, and perhaps Geographical comparisons.

Unfortunately, my edition of the story is very basic – country mouse goes to visit the town (and finds that there is no place like home), but not vice versa. It’s nicely illustrated, and perhaps would work well in EYFS, but there are better editions of the story out there. Jan Brett’s version offers the more sophisticated tale mentioned above.

[Karim Elmenshawy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Goodbye," said the country mouse, "You do, indeed, live in a plentiful city, but I am going home where I can enjoy my dinner in peace."

[Krisz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice retelling with lovely pictures, the 4-yr-old didn't like it that much. I think the danger wasn't that apparent in this story that explains why the country mouse liked the country more.

[Hrefna (Habbi) Helgadóttir · Rating 4 out of 5]

classic story

[Lex Redding · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love stories that teach our littles and this one shows that two mice can like very different things, and that's ok.

[Sven Reeves · Rating 5 out of 5]

beautiful book, feels so warm and homely.

[Lucy Reid-Pudalik · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this with my 7 year old son and asked him to review it. He said he really enjoyed this story and liked how it was written.

[Hm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good💝

[Sarah Hills · Rating 2 out of 5]

B’s book - the message and illustration style of this book don’t marry up well with the appropriate age. Too old for B to understand the meaning behind this.

[Yi Ju · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the story. When I was a kid, I read this story in Chinese version. I couldn’t find so many details. I love the description, details and vivid illustration to create a new picture of the story.

[Andrej Doležaj · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was nice, but Tom was mean.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book because it gave children a lesson to learn and take something away after reading. This book demonstrates that having the most doesn’t always mean you have the best. The little country mouse is quite content with his simple life rather than the hustle and bustle of the town!

[Kathleen Ruff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun book for any age. It tells the story of two mice but they are from different places. They take time to visit each other's homes but they aren't a good fit and in the end they both return to their homes, most glad to be there. This would be a great book to read when giving a lesson on similarities and differences.