Remember Mouse from If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
He loves Bunny because she’s the best at hide-and-seek…
…and Fox even though she’s not.
Mouse has his calendar blocked out with card-making days, and the adorable pictures show him with a huge bottle of glue and a salt shaker of glitter, busily making special cards for everyone. Of course (every mom’s dream), there is glitter everywhere! If kids pay close attention to the details in the illustrations, they will see how perfect each card is for each friend, as Mouse has designed them with much thought and care. This is a great opportunity to reassure kids that God made each one of us with unique gifts and talents, and what is on the inside is much more important than what is on the outside. I really appreciate how the author focuses on each friend’s talent, or even lack of talent, in a positive way, instead of on superficial things. Kids will giggle at all the cute surprises in the pictures and will want to find Mouse on each page, which may take some searching on a few.
Our family’s copy has a stapled binding which is not recommended for little hands. However, the story is now available in board book format.
If you have never read If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, be sure to read it first so you will fully appreciate how Mouse’s friends shower him with valentines at the end of Happy Valentine’s Day Mouse. This is a simple, sweet book, perfect for sharing with little ones and inspiring them to make their own individualized valentine cards, if you are not afraid of a little glitter.
The illustrations look so cute and lovely! I haven’t come across this series in the libraries over here, but I will keep watching for it.