Cute Mouse Brother 3: Another Small Shirt of Mouse Brother

Author: Takao Nakagawa (Text) Noriko Ueno (Illustrations)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-06-01
Features: The mouse brothers created by Takao Nakagawa and Noriko Ueno have been beloved by children since their debut in 1974. The book "Mouse's Little Shirt" alone has been reprinted 153 times. This series has won numerous prestigious awards, including the Japan Library Association's Good Picture Book Award, the Japan Talk Mirai Publishing Culture Picture Book Award, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Child Welfare Culture Award. It is not only the pinnacle of Japanese picture books but also a classic among world picture books. This is the third book in the "Adorable Mouse Brothers" series, introducing Mouse Sister.
Mom knits another little shirt for Mouse Brother, and the elephant wants to borrow it. Mouse Brother says, "No, no, you're too big." (He's a bit more mature after the last incident!) But it's different with Mouse Sister. Mouse Brother generously lends her the shirt. (Her face turns red.) The story takes a dramatic turn here. Mouse Sister lends the shirt to the duck, who wears it to swim. The shirt stretches out and even fades, making Mouse Sister very angry, and the duck is clueless. But the sea lion comes to the rescue, saying, "It's okay, let me try it on." (A recurring trait in the Mouse Brothers series—joyful and playful.)
The shirt keeps stretching and stretching until, in the end, it fits the elephant. Seeing that the elephant now has a suitable shirt, Mouse Brother plans to take back the shirt he lent to Mouse Sister so they can go for a walk together. However, what awaits him is this:
Although the story is interesting, it falls far short of the effect we see today if only words are used. When the elephant asks to borrow the shirt, what is Mouse Brother's expression? And when Mouse Sister asks, what about Mouse Brother's expression? Expressions allow us to vividly understand Mouse Brother's subtle inner thoughts, something words cannot replace.
The shirt stretches out—what does it look like? Without illustrations, readers might imagine it, but they won't laugh. Only when we see the shirt hanging from the hippo's bulky body like a rope and the hippo's frustrated expression do we find it funny. This sense of humor comes from the visual imagery.
Similarly, Mouse Brother cheerfully sings a song (depicted with musical notes on the page) to retrieve his shirt, while Mouse Sister sweats profusely, frantically knitting another one—these humorous moments cannot be expressed without pictures.
Such works not only give children aesthetic pleasure when reading but also have an immeasurable long-term visual impact on them. Because, as the saying goes, the ability to appreciate beauty needs to be trained.