MOUSE & MOLE Book 9 – BOO TO THE WHO- is out now. Only 2 more titles to go – then the novel, on which the animation Mouse & Mole at Christmas time is based, with the voices of Alan Bennet as Mole, Richard Briers as Mouse, Imelda Staunton as Shrew. (Stephen Fry was signed up to do Mole, but disappeared to Bruges on the day of the recording. Alan Bennett gallantly stepped in). I thought the glory days were over but Mouse & Mole is inscribed in stone on one of the Norwich Book Benches in Upper St Giles, in the company of Black Beauty and Julian of Norwich. ( I kid you not.) It gives me great pleasure to see people sitting on them.
There are 3 stories in each book, all between 500 & 600 words long, with a controlled vocabulary, except for the odd juicy word like ‘preposterous’ which rolls so nicely off the tongue. Nicolette Jones , children’s book editor of the Sunday Times, says the books are ‘perfect for newly confident readers – and far superior to standard reading schemes. ‘
Any child who reads the stories from book 1-11 will know the characters and their environment so well that they could easily progress to the 7,000 words novel. The Italian publisher says they are ‘perfectly pitched between a picture book and a first chapter book, filling a niche that very few series do.’
There is strong adult appeal too, because Mouse & Mole are childlike grown ups who get into scrapes, as well as doing their own housework and laundry. AND they ride a fetching red motorbike! The stories are described as funny, thought provoking, and beautifully illustrated by James Mayhew, with emotionally expressive faces and body language. This special Mouse and singular Mole have an inner life, conveyed in the drawings and the dialogue – not forgetting the spaces between the lines.
They can be ordered from all good book shops – Book Hive, Bookbugs & Dragon Tales, Jarrolds etc. If you would like them signed I am happy to call into the shops and sign them – just leave the name of the recipient. I’m sure James would do that too. Happy Christmas!
