Petersen,
David. Mouse Guard; Fall 1152.
Villard, 2008. (192 pages)
Peterson succeeds in
setting up an interesting world complete with maps, commerce, towns, trade, and
conflict. This book seems to be part of a series, and reading the whole series
would probably shed more light on this particular book.
The mouse guard has
made a discovery in the woods: there is treachery which threatens the home of
the guard and its matriarch, Gwendolyn. Many characters, both wizened and young,
band together to stave off the attacking army of Midnight - a rogue mouse
guard. Along the way, larger creatures pose a danger to the mice, including
crabs and a snake. However, the right side has a victory in the end.
Petersen’s
illustrations are brilliant. The value of the drawings is fairly dark, as is
his subject matter. Like many graphic novel writers, I think the drawings may
outshine the story. But, this story may have been more compelling if read in
its entire context (which I have not had the opportunity to do). I thought that
this may be a book for older children since some of the script writing may be
difficult for a young one to navigate. But, the tale is not too much for a
young reader – it brings to mind series which my children have read and loved
such as Brian Jacques’ Redwall series
and Erin Hunter’s Warriors series. I
think that readers would be able to get into this and read all the books; the
makings of an addictive series are present.
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