nice children's read-aloud chapter book (2nd-5th grades?); very straight-forward story, some rarer vocabulary thrown in. ( )

It’s another treasure of a book from Newbery-winner Richard Peck.

In the mouse world of Buckingham Palace, where for every human job there is a mouse who does it better, Mouse Minor (who has no real name and no idea about his origins) is fed up with school. He never shies away from a fight with the bullies who pick on him…but he never wins one, either. So one day he bolts.

At first Mouse Minor has no destination in mind. But when his flight lands him in the palace stables, a conversation with one of the queen’s horses makes up the mouse’s mind: he is going to find the queen and ask her who he is. His new goal takes him all over the palace and its grounds and ends with a surprise much bigger than the mouse himself.

I just love Richard Peck’s wit. He is an ace with wordplay and clever imagery. For example, Mouse Minor (the mouse with the question mark tail, obviously) says at one point that his tail was asking questions all over the air. What a creative way to describe Mouse Minor’s befuddlement! And check out this little gem: “I was close to despair and no nearer my goals.” Love it. ( )

Exceptionally disappointing entry from the author of "A Year Down Yonder," and "A Long Way From Chicago."
Mouse Minor is a mouse in the stables of Buckingham Palace, so insignificant he doesn't even have a real name. A bunch of relatively random seeming low-key "adventures" happen to him, and in the end he discovers he is the future King of Mice.
Good writing, and some nice humorous touches, but the plot is simplistic and (to me at least) not very interesting. More importantly, the reader is never drawn to really feel anything for the protagonist. None of the characters are deeply developed. To make a movie comparison, it suffers for the same reasons "Star Wars: Episode I" was so dreadful. That movie focused on special effects and plot, with no regard for character development. This book focuses on plot and a cute turn of phrase, with no regard for character development. I didn't care in the least what happened to Mouse Minor. ( )

6. I chose this book because I wanted to see if I should use Richard Peck as my author to study. This is not one of the books he received an award for. I had a hard time following the information about the British royalty and levels of workers in the palace. Maybe someone from Britian would follow this part of the story better. I am reading another one of his books now and am enjoying it way more.

7. I might use this book if we were studying Queen Victoria or that time period.

cute story. wasn't a fan of the pacing or narrative tone, but I'm sure my littles will enjoy it. ( )