Halloween is coming, and the students in Roger’s class at school are preparing for their Halloween play. The class rehearses their play every day, and they make invitations to the play to send out to people in town.
On the night of the play, the school’s auditorium is full of people waiting to watch the play, and Roger waits backstage for his turn to go on stage. He doesn’t have a big role in the play, but his role is important.
The other students in Roger’s class go on stage, dressed as witches, ghosts, and skeletons. They perform the songs and dances they’ve rehearsed. The audience laughs at the funny parts, and everyone is enjoying the play.
All the time, Roger is backstage, listening and preparing for his part. He counts down the lines until the moment comes when Roger steps on stage for the play’s finale!
The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive (multiple copies).
My Reaction
I remember reading this book when I was a little kid, and it was a Halloween favorite of mine! Felicia Bond is better known today as the illustrator (but not the author) of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, which was originally published two years after this particular picture book. The art style between the two books is noticeably similar, but the book about the Halloween play is different because this is about mice who live like people and do not interact with humans. I was also amused that one of the student mice in this book was dressed in an orange shirt with a black zig-zag and black shorts, like the cartoon character Charlie Brown, who wears a yellow shirt with a black zig-zag and black shorts. The tv special It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was known for popularizing the concept of Halloween tv specials, and Roger the mouse plays a large pumpkin in his class’s Halloween play, although Roger isn’t the mouse wearing the Charlie Brown style clothes. Roger is the one in the sweater with an R on the front. I was just amused by this little detail in the pictures of his class.
This picture book is a sweet little story about a mouse boy and the Halloween play given by his class. School plays on a wide variety of themes are a common experience for human children attending both public and private schools, and they are often memorable points in children’s school experiences. They can also be very emotional experiences. Students can be nervous about plays and being on stage in front of an audience, and sometimes, there are conflicts about which students get the best parts. This cute little picture book doesn’t have any drama in it and doesn’t talk about stage fright, although there are other children’s books that address these issues.
Instead, the story is more about a magical evening and the small but important role played by one particular student. Much of the story shows the build-up to the play, and when the play begins, Roger only appears on stage at the end of the play. The rest of the time, he’s listening to the other students from back stage, waiting for his cue to step into the spotlight. We don’t know exactly what the play is about, but it’s not that important. Those quiet moments of anticipation backstage are magical, and Roger will never forget how exciting this evening has been!
Sniffy books or scratch-and-sniff books were a new development during the 1970s, and they remained popular through the mid-1980s, along with scratch-and-sniff stickers. This particular book features characters from Richard Scarry‘s Busytown series, especially Lowly Worm. The first part of the book has Lowly and his friend Huckle Cat looking at a sniffy book and teaching readers how to use the scratch-and-sniff parts of the picture.
The rest of the book takes readers through the four seasons: spring, summer, fall, and winter. In each season, there are different objects and foods associated with the season for readers to scratch and sniff. In the spring, the characters smell violets and bananas that they eat at the circus.
During the summer, there are lemons for making lemonade and chocolate ice cream sticks that they eat at the beach.
During the fall, there are apples and pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving.
The winter parts focus on Christmas, with pine-scented Christmas trees and gingerbread pigs.
My Reaction
Sniffy books and stickers were common features of my early childhood in the 1980s. I think they still exist, although I don’t know if they’re as popular in the 21st century as they were back when they were relatively new developments. This particular sniffy book was a favorite of mine and my brother when we were little kids.
One of the interesting things about finding some of these older sniffy books decades later is seeing which of the scratch-and-sniff patches have held up over the years. They do wear out over the time, especially the ones that have been scratched more than others, meaning that favorite scent patches will wear out faster. Milder scents are also harder to detect years later than the ones that were always strong. In our old copy of this book, I can’t smell the lemon, chocolate ice cream, pumpkin pie, or gingerbread any more, but the violet, banana, apple, and pine are still fine. I think those scents were always the strongest.
The Poky Little Puppy is the last to wake up on this snowy day, seeing his brothers and sisters rushing outside to play as he starts his breakfast. When he finishes his breakfast and goes outside, he doesn’t see the other puppies, but there are children playing in the snow.
The Poky Little Puppy follows the puppy paws through the snow and finds his siblings. The other puppies go sliding now a hill together, but the Poky Little Puppy gets a ride on a child’s sled.
The Poky Little Puppy also tries to make a snow angel with a child and chases snowballs the children throw. He was the last puppy to start playing and the last to make it home to dinner because he is “poky” and arrives late to everything, but in the process, he had the most fun of everyone! (Although, he does fall asleep before eating his dessert.)
The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive.
My Reaction
This is just a cute little story about the fun that a puppy has on a snowy day. I liked the message that the Poky Little Puppy has fun going through the day at his own pace and doing his own thing. Even though he isn’t always doing what his brothers and sisters are doing and sometimes trails behind them, he makes the most out of this fun, snowy day!
The Little Red Hen pictures by Tadasu Izawa and Shigemi Hijikata, 1968.
This cute picture book is part of a series of Puppet Storybooks. What makes it distinctive from other picture books is that the pictures are all photographs of tableaux with detailed puppets. The story is a retelling of the classic Little Red Hen folktale.
A hen finds a grain of wheat, but no one is interested in helping her plant it, so she does it herself. When it’s time to harvest the wheat, none of the other animals will help her, so she also cuts the wheat herself.
Because no one wants to help her, she takes the wheat to the mill to be made into flour and bakes it into bread all by herself.
When she has the nice loaf of bread that she has made, all of the animals who didn’t want to help before suddenly come to help her eat it. However, since none of them helped with making the bread, the Little Red Hen eats the bread herself with her chicks.
My Reaction
I’ve had this book since I was a little kid, and I always liked the pictures! The puppets are detailed and posed in realistic ways. The picture on the cover of the book is a 3D hologram, and I was fascinated by it as a young child. It was one of the first holographic images that I saw as a child!
(In my defense, I might not have been the one who scribbled crayon on that cover image. I was pretty good about not drawing on books when I was little, and most of my childhood books were used, so that scribble might have happened before I got it. I don’t remember anymore, so it’s hard to deny it completely, but according to my memory, my messy scribbles were done on the back wall of my closet, behind my clothes, because I knew that drawing on walls wasn’t allowed, and I was realized that if you’re going to draw on the wrong surface, it’s best to do it where nobody’s going to see it and complain. I was sneaky like that.)
While my copy of this book was printed in English, the books in the series were originally written, illustrated, printed, and bound in Japan. I never noticed that when I was a kid because I never bothered to look at the names of the illustrators and had no interest in where it was printed, but I found it interesting as an adult. It makes me think that there are probably also versions of this book written in Japanese, but I’ve never seen any.
How Fletcher Was Hatched! by Wende and Harry Devlin, 1969.
Fletcher the dog is sad and upset because it seems like his owner, Alexandra, is forgetting about him. She’s been playing with the new baby chicks, which she thinks are cute, and she’s been forgetting to pet her dog or even fill his water bowl!
Distressed, Fletcher goes to see his friends, Beaver and Otter, at the pond. Beaver and Otter don’t have human owners, so they don’t understand Fletcher’s feelings about Alexandra, but they try to think of ways to get her attention. They think it would help if Fletcher could make himself more like the chicks Alexandra has been obsessed with. Aince he can’t make himself small and yellow, they decide that he should hatch out of an egg, like the chicks do. Fletcher is skeptical about this plan, but Beaver and Otter think that hatching out of an egg will be like having a new beginning in his relationship with Alexandra.
Beaver and Otter build an egg around Fletcher with reeds, grass, and clay from the river, leaving a little hole so they can give Fletcher water and food. When they’re done, it’s a very convincing but giant egg.
By the time they’re finished, it’s night. Fletcher is uncomfortable sleeping in the egg and wonders what Alexandra is doing. Meanwhile, Alexandra is having trouble sleeping because she’s worried about her lost dog.
In the morning, Beaver and Otto roll the egg over to Alexandra’s school to make sure that she sees it. The first person who sees the egg, though, is the school’s custodian. He’s shocked at the sight of such a giant egg and starts yelling for the science teacher to come look at it.
Soon, the egg is surrounded by children and adults, marveling over what kind of it could be and where it came from. The science teacher brings a friend who is a university professor, and the two of them are convinced that the egg must belong to a rare creature, although they disagree about the type of creature it is.
Fletcher waits to hatch until he hears Alexandra. Alexandra’s friends are excited about the egg, but she’s just upset and only wants to go looking for her lost dog.
Fletcher decides it’s time to hatch, and he busts his way out of the egg. Alexandra is happy to see him, even though Fletcher’s attempt at peeping is a little weak. Everyone is confused, but Alexandra is just relieved that she has her dog back. Fletcher feels better, realizing that he is important to Alexandra, and she really cares about him, even though he’s not yellow and doesn’t peep.
The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive.
My Reaction
I read this book as a kid, but I had forgotten much of the story. I remembered that Fletcher hatched out of an artificial egg and that he did it to get his owner’s attention, but I couldn’t remember why he needed attention. I can understand Alexandra being temporarily distracted by the little chicks on the farm, but forgetting to give her dog water is really bad for a pet owner. I felt like her parents should have noticed and said something. But, mostly, the situation is just set up for the purposes of this humorous hatching of a dog from a giant egg. Because the egg was created by animals, the humans in the story never find out how or why Fletcher got in the egg, which is actually the funniest part for me as an adult.
The Poky Little Puppy and his siblings are excited because they’re going to visit their grandmother. The Poky Little Puppy wakes up later than his siblings, and when he gets up, he feels playful and frisky. He keeps running around and knocking things over. He makes such a mess that his mother puts him in time out to calm down.
After while, his mother lets him go outside to play with his siblings, but she warns him not to get dirty because they’re going to visit his grandmother. However, the Poky Little Puppy doesn’t listen. Instead, he digs a hole under the fence and ends up in the neighbor’s yard, where he plays with some laundry and drags it through the mud, getting himself and the laundry all dirty.
As his mother and the other puppies start walking to their grandmother’s house, the mother sends the Poky Little Puppy back to apologize to the neighbor. Instead, the Poky Little Puppy gets into more trouble by chasing a butterfly through another neighbor’s flower bed. When he finally makes it to his grandmother’s house, he’s wet and muddy and leaves tracks all over his grandmother’s floor.
His grandmother makes him help her clean up, but even that doesn’t calm him down. Grandmother wants to read a story to the puppies, but the Poky Little Puppy is still too energetic. He knocks over a table and makes another big mess. By the time they get it all cleaned up, there’s no time for a story, and they all have to go home.
Finally, the Poky Little Puppy seems to have exhausted himself and is feeling badly about the trouble he’s caused today. When the puppies have their dinner and dessert, he is extra careful and doesn’t even drop a crumb. He later apologizes to the neighbors and promises to do better.
The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive.
My Reaction
This is just a cute little story about the problems that young kids can get into when they’re feeling energetic and playful but are also acting thoughtlessly and going too far. Just being playful by itself isn’t a problem, but the Poky Little Puppy has to learn some self-control about how he plays, just like human children.
The puppies’ mother allows them to go exploring a little outside of their own yard, but she warns them to stay away from the highway because the cars are dangerous and reminds them to be home in time for dinner. She also adds that if they get lost, they should rely on their sense of smell to get home.
As the puppies explore, they meet other animals in the countryside and stop to play. Eventually, they find themselves on the edge of the city. They are frightened of the noise of the cars, and a pigeon tells them that they’d better stay away from the city if they want to avoid cars.
The puppies realize that they need to turn around and go home, but when they try to sniff for familiar smells to go home, they have trouble. When they try to smell the apple orchard, they accidentally find a stand where a man is ffselling apples instead. Trying to smell flowers leads them to a flower cart. Trying to sniff for animals smells leads them to the zoo.
Then, the Poky Little Puppy realizes that what they really need to do is sniff for their own smell so they can retrace their steps home. Sniffing for their own trail works, and the puppies get home in time for dinner!
My Reaction
Like other Poky Little Puppy books, the story is cute. Nothing very stressful happens in the story, making it a good story for bedtime. Even though the puppies get lost temporarily, it isn’t for very long, and they get home in time for dinner, as they do in other Poky Little Puppy books.
The Poky Little Puppy by Janette Sebring Lowrey, illustrated by Gustaf Tenggren, 1942, 1982.
This is a famous class children’s book, the first in a series from the Little Golden Books collection! In fact, it was one of the original first 12 Little Golden Books that were published in 1942.
Five little puppies like to dig holes under the fence and go exploring. Then, four of the puppies realize that one of their brothers isn’t with them. They look around and find him sniffing at the ground. When they ask him what he’s doing, he says that he smells something.
The puppies realize that the smell is rice pudding, and they hurry home to get some. However, their mother is angry about the holes they dug and sends them to bed without dessert.
The puppy who originally smelled the rice pudding is slower than the others (or “poky” as the book describes him, which is why he’s called the Poky Little Puppy). He comes home later than the others, and while everyone is asleep, he eats all the rice pudding himself.
The next day, their mother puts up a sign telling them not to dig holes under the fence, but the puppies ignore it and dig holes anyway so they can go exploring. While they’re out, the Poky Little Puppy hears something.
The other puppies realize that it’s the sound of chocolate custard being dished up, and they hurry home to get some. Again, they’re punished for digging holes, and they’re sent to bed without dessert. And again, the Poky Little Puppy comes home last and eats all the dessert while everyone is in bed.
The next day, the puppies dig holes again, but this time, when they hurry home for dessert and their mother is mad at them, the four puppies who got home quickly fill in the holes they dug. Their mother, seeing that they fixed the holes, decides to let them have their dessert. The Poky Little Puppy, who came home late again, doesn’t get any because the others ate his share, too.
The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive (multiple copies).
My Reaction
This is a very simple story, but I remember liking it as a kid. Kids like stories with repetition, so the repeated incidents in the book appeal to them. The Poky Little Puppy thinks that he’s found a trick to getting all the dessert by staying out late enough that his mother has gone to bed and can’t tell him to go to bed without dessert. But, his trick stops working when the other puppies clean up their act and get the dessert before he even gets there. In the end, all of the puppies learn that digging holes means no dessert for any of them anymore.
Since the characters’ adventures in the previous book, Minabell Mouse has come to live with her Aunt Pitty Pat in their ancestral home, Mousehaven Manor. Just as Aunt Pitty Pat and Minabell have finished their spring cleaning, Minabell’s cousin Violet Mae arrives for a visit … apparently a long one, based on the amount of luggage that she brought with her.
Also, the prairie hawk who brought Violet Mae to Mousehaven Manor brings a package for Minabell, although there’s nothing to say who the package is from. Minabell finds the package disturbing and is afraid to open it. Instead, she stashes it in the music room. Still, the package leaves her feeling weak and unwell, as if it were somehow cursed.
That evening, their friend Percy the bat comes to dinner, and they are also joined by a mysterious stranger bat who calls himself Count Von Flittermouse. Count Von Flittermouse is a traveler, but he has no luggage except for a large box, which he declines to bring inside. They invite him to join them for dinner, but he says he’s already eaten, so he will just join them in conversation. Aunt Pitty Pat asks the Count if he’d like to spend the night at Mousehaven Manor, but the Count says that he’s a nocturnal creature, so he’s active at night. He asks for directions to Springfield because he says he wants to camp in the Oak Ridge Cemetery and visit Lincoln’s tomb. After dinner, the Count leaves, and they see he’s carrying a long box on his back. He’d mentioned that he brought his bed with him, so they figure that’s what it is. Percy seems a little uneasy about the Count, and Minabell notices that the Count left some odd kind of dust on the chair where he was sitting.
Minabell is in charge of security at Mousehaven Manor, but that evening, she accidentally leaves the music room window open. At night, Minabell hears someone moving around the manor, but she never sees the mysterious intruder, and in the morning, nothing is missing, so her aunt thinks it might have been her imagination.
Meanwhile, a country singer mouse called the Rhinestone Rodent arrives in town. (A joke on the Rhinestone Cowboy song.) Minabell is shopping when she stops to watch the singer perform. Then, an alarm goes up among the mice in town because Mousehaven Manor is on fire! Minabell rushes home, and Percy rings the bell at Mousehaven Manor to summon help. Others come to form a bucket brigade, and they successfully put the fire out. Aunt Pitty Pat is fine, but it takes them awhile to find Violet Mae. Violet Mae casually strolls downstairs and tells them that she was upstairs, having a nap and missing the whole thing.
Part of the mansion is damaged from the fire, and they have to clean everything up. Violet Mae meets the Rhinestone Rodent and develops a crush on him. While Violet Mae and Aunt Pitty Pat go to see the Rhinestone Rodent perform, Minabell and Percy inspect the site of the fire. They determine that the fire was set deliberately, but it was never intended to burn down the whole mansion. It seems like whoever set the fire was using it to cause a distraction while they did something else, but they’re not sure what.
The mysterious package that Minabell hid in the music room is still there, and Minabell finally opens it in front of Percy. It turns out that it’s from Wendell Weasel, a member of the local law enforcement agency, the Illinois State Ski Patrol. The mysterious package contains an equally mysterious ancient box, and Wendell’s letter explains that this box has been passed down in the Mouse family for generations, always held by the head of the family. Until recently, it was in the possession of Colonel Mouse, who was Violet Mae’s guardian but has recently passed away (something that Violet Mae has completely failed to mention to anyone, which is weird). Wendell says that Violet Mae doesn’t know anything about the box, but Colonel Mouse wanted Minabell to look after both the box and Violet Mae. Wendell says that there is a document in the box itself that will explain the purpose of the box, but each caretaker of the box is bound to use its contents to help others and not just for personal gain. Also, there are evil people who may try to steal the box, so Minabell is going to have to be careful.
In the mysterious antique box, Minabell finds a pile of sand surrounding a bottle holding something intensely cold and an old map written in Spanish. It seems like this is what their mysterious intruder was looking for, but what does it mean, and who wants it?
The book is available to borrow and read for free online through Internet Archive (multiple copies).
My Reaction and Spoilers
This story is more supernatural than the previous book in the series, which was an adventure story. I thought that the villain in the story was pretty obvious, although I did have a couple other suspects in mind for a more devious twist. It turned out to be the obvious choice, though.
Count von Flittermouse is not what he seems, in more ways than once. Percy figures out pretty quickly that the Count is a vampire bat, but what that seems to mean in this version of the animal world is not only different from what vampire bats actually are, but it’s also kind of confusing. I expected that he’d turn out to be like a human vampire, only with a bat as his main form – drinking blood, being immortal, etc. But, that’s not it. Count von Flittermouse is a shapeshifter. He can change into different scary animals, like wolf and spider. That’s his main super power. So, he’s not exactly what I think of as a “vampire”, he’s more like a werewolf, or werebat, or werewolf bat or something. We never see him drink blood or try to drink blood, although there are some bones in his lair that suggest that he might eat other animals. They don’t really go deep into the lore of it or outline the rules for vampire bats in their version of Illinois. You just have to take their word for it that vampire bats are shapeshifters, and that’s it. That’s their thing. Also, their vampire bats aren’t immortal vampires. That’s really the problem that Count von Flittermouse has. He’s actually a very old vampire bat and not likely to live much longer unless he can get his little winged paws on the package that Minabell received.
The bottle in the mysterious package turns out to contain water from the Fountain of Youth. Generations back, one of Minabell’s ancestors accompanied Spanish conquistadors on their search for the Fountain of Youth, and they not only found it but saved some water from it. Count von Flittermouse wants it to restore his youth and make him immortal. It wouldn’t be so bad if he wasn’t also evil and a werewolf bat.
Of course, our heroes are victorious. They find a way to use the special water so that it benefits everyone, except for the evil bat, and everything ends happily. I actually think that this book might make a fun Disney cartoon, something like a more supernatural version of The Great Mouse Detective. Even though I thought that the book’s version of what a vampire bat is and what it does is a little confusing, a movie version could clarify some of the rules regarding what vampire bats are supposed to be and what they do. The lore about human vampires varies depending on the source, although they usually do have the ability to shapeshift into bats, an ability which is kind of pointless if the vampire happens to already be a bat. It’s understandable that the story has to tweak the traditional vampire lore to fit into this animal society. I kind of picture that the vampire bat would only be able to change into things whose blood it sucked earlier, but that’s just my theory; the book doesn’t clarify that point. Still, it’s a fun story, and I think a movie version would also be fun.
Shadow Over Mousehaven Manor by Mary DeBall Kwitz, 1989.
Minabell Mouse is happily looking forward to her Aunt Pitty Pat visiting her for Christmas with her new husband, Magnus, but she receives an urgent message from Magnus, saying that her aunt is very ill and may not survive much longer. He urges Minabell to home to her aunt’s home, Mousehaven Manor right away and bring the copy of her aunt’s will that her aunt left with her. With her home suddenly damaged badly by a storm, Minabell does immediately set out for Mousehaven Manor, crossing the Illinois prairie through the tunnel called Rodent Run, which small animals use to travel in safety. Before she leaves home, one of her friends gives her a Christmas present to take with her, something long and thin. It’s awkward to carry, but her friend insists that she take it with her and open it on Christmas. Another friend warns her to beware of the tough Chicago rats who are a gang of criminals who have invaded Chicago’s City Hall.
On the way, Minabell Mouse stops to rest and has a fearful encounter with a group of rats carrying a pirate flag with the name “Prairie Pirates” on it. She witnesses them murder a chicken at a farm, pluck it, and carry it off. It’s horrifying, and Minabell is lucky that the pirates didn’t see her. She is alerted by a stranger who makes her keep quiet.
The stranger introduces himself as Secret Agent Wendell Weasel, a member of the Illinois State Ski Patrol, a form of animal law enforcement. Minabell asks Wendell who those pirates were, but before he answers her questions, he insists that she identify herself and tell him where she’s going and why. Minabell explains to Wendell about her aunt, and he looks at the copy of the will she is carrying, which leaves everything to her, as her aunt’s closest relative.
Wendell urges Minabell to turn around and go home because it’s too dangerous for her to continue her journey. The Prairie Pirates are a band of Chicago rats, and the “Sungam” that they heard the pirates chant is the code name of their leader. Wendell says that he can’t tell her more than that because the information is classified, but he says that if Minabell really thinks about the word “Sungam”, she will see that there is a good reason not to go to her Aunt Pitty Pat and Uncle Magnus. (Hint, hint.) Of course, Minabell doesn’t see what Wendell is talking about at first and continues her journey because she thinks Aunt Pitty Pat needs her. She does, but not in the way Minabell expects.
Minabell does realize the significance of the word “Sungam” when she uses it to frighten off cats who attack her. Puzzling over the word more, Minabell tries writing it out in the snow and sees that it’s “Magnus” spelled backward. Minabell realizes that her aunt has actually married the leader of the Prairie Pirates! The Prairie Pirates have taken over Mousehaven Manor, and her beloved aunt is their prisoner! (Flying their pirate flag over the house isn’t the most subtle way to lure an innocent victim into their new hideout. I don’t think it even counts as a hideout anymore if you have a banner advertising that you’re there. Even if Minabell hadn’t already figured out the code name clue, the flag is a dead giveaway. Just saying.)
There is still time for Minabell to turn back before meeting the pirates, but she can’t leave her aunt in danger and Mousehaven Manor occupied by the enemy. However, she’s going to have to come up with a clever plan, or she’s going to be in danger, too.
I haven’t found a copy of this book online, but there is also a sequel called The Bell Tolls at Mousehaven Manor. There are only two books in the series.
My Reaction and Spoilers
I had to get this book because I vaguely remembered a teacher reading it to my class years ago in elementary school. There was a lot about the book that I forgot over the years. I had completely forgotten that it was actually a Christmas story. My strongest memory of this story was actually a small detail, but one that they repeat during the book. Minabell has a little ritual that she does whenever she needs to remember something, particularly when she needs to remember where she hid something. I had forgotten the rhyme she says, but I remembered her writing what she needs to remember on her forehead with her finger. That struck me as actually a clever trick because writing something, even if you never look at it again, helps things to stay in your memory because you really need to concentrate in order to write, and you can remember the act of writing, which brings back the memory of what you’ve written. When I was a kid, after hearing this story, I used to do that sometimes, write something on my forehead with a finger to help me remember.
Reading the book as an adult, the Sungam/Magnus clue is pretty obvious. The plot also sort of reminds me of The Mysteries of Udolpho, which I read several years ago because I really like Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey, which references and parodies that book. The connection that book and this one is that part of the long, rambling, episodic plot of The Mysteries of Udolpho involves an aunt who has cluelessly married the leader of a gang of bandits, and the leader of the gang just wants to acquire her money and property. This book is a little different because the mouse aunt has not actually married the rat; he’s just holding her captive so he can take over her house and use it as the base for his gang and claiming that they’re married to justify occupying the manor. Like in The Mysteries of Udolpho, the bandit leader holds the aunt and her niece captive at an isolated manor house, trying to get the aunt to not only sign over all her money and property to him but also her niece’s inheritance. That’s why Magnus told Minabell to bring her copy of her aunt’s will. He needs to change the will so that it leaves Mousehaven Manor to him.
So, strangely, Shadow Over Mousehaven Manor is a little like The Mysteries of Udolpho for children. I actually recommend it more than The Mysteries of Udolpho because The Mysteries of Udolpho is rather long and disjointed. Both books contain some admiration of the beauties of the countryside while the character that travel, but the scenery descriptions are much longer in The Mysteries of Udolpho, and Shadow Over Mousehaven Manor is just more fun to read because it involves talking mice and pirate rats. The mice in this book are also much more sensible than the humans in The Mysteries of Udolpho. The mouse aunt knows darn well what Magnus is, while the human aunt was completely clueless almost up to the point where her husband caused her death. I’ve amused friends sometimes with describing The Mysteries of Udolpho, and I might put my short (short-ish) explanation of the plot (plots) of the book on the Internet sometime just for fun, but I mostly recommend reading that book only if you’ve already read and like Northanger Abbey.
I’m going to include some spoilers for the story because this book isn’t currently available to read online. Minabell has the presence of mind to realize that, before she attempts to enter Mousehaven Manor and save her aunt, she needs to hide the will she is carrying because she can’t let it fall into Magnus’s hands. When she does reach the manor, she is also imprisoned with her aunt in the manor’s dungeon, along with a friend who came to try to help her. (I don’t really know why any mansion in the US, mouse or human, needs a dungeon, but maybe mouse history in the US was more feudal than human society or something. It doesn’t really matter. It’s just a really cool mouse manor house, and it has a dungeon. It also has secret passages.) They get out of the dungeon because the aunt remembers an old song that has a clue to a secret way out of the dungeon, and they find their way to the belfry tower, where they ring the bell to signal for help. There, they meet a family of bats hibernating in the bell tower. The bell wakes them up, and one of them helps them reach their friends. Minabell, her aunt, and their friends battle the pirates and drive the out of Mousehaven Manor. They celebrate with a big New Year’s party, and Minabell decides that she wants to continue living at Mousehaven Manor with her aunt.
Jestress's Forgotten Books and Stories 