Reviews for The barking mouse
Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.
PreS-Gr. 1. Sacre heard this story from his Cuban grandmother, and though there are other versions from other places, this one is especially sprightly. Mama, Papa, Sister, and Brother Mouse go to a picnic. While Mama and Papa spend time smooching, the children go off to play and eventually come upon a cat behind a fence. As they laugh and tease the cat, they fail to notice that it's getting angrier; when the cat jumps over the fence, the chase is on. Papa has big muscles, but when the cat catches up, it's Mama who protects the children--by barking. The cat decides that Mama is loco and moves on. Although told primarily in English, a sprinkling of Spanish words and phrases, translated within the text and in a glossary, adds an authentic note. The amusing artwork features a family of big-eared mice, full of personality and love for one another; that mother and father certainly enjoy kissing! A welcome choice for kids who speak English, Spanish, or both. --Ilene Cooper Copyright 2003 Booklist
School Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
K-Gr 2-This retelling of a Cuban folktale moves slowly as a mouse family on a picnic has an encounter with an orange tabby cat. Also, the title reveals the twist at the end, wherein Mam proves herself the more useful parent when she frightens the cat away. The story is preceded by a glossary of 14 Spanish words and phrases. Simple sentences and amusing characterizations may engage some children, but many will be put off by the mouse parents' obsession with "smooching." Aguirre's freshly hued acrylic pictures feature flat cartoon profiles and a variety of composition styles.-Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Two Spanish-speaking mouse siblings provoke a cat, who chases them back to their picnic site, where Pap¯, who has earlier bragged about his muscles, turns coward. Peppered with Spanish words and phrases, this tale shuns predictability to the end, when Mam¯, who has scared off the cat by barking, notes that ""It pays to speak another language!"" The acrylic images feature four hilariously hammy mice. Glos. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
