In preparation for this month's Virtual Book Club for Kids we checked out all the Leo Lionni books we could find from the library. The ones that were available that day seemed to have a common theme - almost every book we checked out had a mouse as the main character.
The Greentail Mouse is the offbeat fable of a city mouse who visits his peaceful country
cousins and tells them about Mardi Gras in the city. The country mice
are inspired to have their own Mardi Gras. And at first, it is fun
wearing their masks with sharp teeth and tusks and scaring each other,
but after a while, they begin believing that they really are ferocious
animals.
Frederick sits on a sunny rock by himself while the other field mice work to gather grain and nuts for winter. “I gather sun rays for the
cold dark winter days,” he tells them. Another day he gathers “colors,”
and then “words.” And when the food runs out, it is Frederick, the
dreamer and poet, whose endless store of supplies warms the hearts of
his fellow mice, and feeds their spirits during the darkest winter days.
Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse is a fable about a real mouse and a
mechanical mouse. Everyone loves Willy the wind-up mouse, while Alexander the real mouse
is chased away with brooms and mousetraps. Wouldn't it be wonderful to
be loved and cuddled, thinks Alexander, and he wishes he could be a
wind-up mouse too.
Theodore and the Talking Mushroom is about a little mouse named Theodore who lives with a lizard that can grow a new tail, a
frog that can swim underwater, and a turtle that can close up like a
box. But Theodore has no special talents of his own. When he discovers a
mushroom that says “Quirp,” Theodore tells his friends that this is the
only talking mushroom in the world, and that “quirp” means that he
should be venerated above all animals. The word spreads, and Theodore is
bestowed with a crown—until the truth comes out. When his friends learn
that they’ve been deceived, Theodore discovers that he does have a
special talent—running away very fast! In honor of these little mice we made a paper plate mouse of our own.
We started by folding a paper plate in half so it would stand up.
We added some eyes, pipe cleaner whiskers and tail, and a nose made from craft foam.
The ears are construction paper folded and glued on the tab so they stand out.
What Leo Lionni books did you explore this month? Please link up your ideas or share them on the Virtual Book Club for Kids facebook page.
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