Cute Mouse Brother 2: Mouse Brother Who Wants to Eat an Apple

Author: Takao Nakagawa (Text) Kayoko Ueno (Illustrations)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-06-01
Features: The mouse characters created by the couple Takao Nakagawa and Kayoko 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 received prestigious awards such as the Japan Library Association's Good Picture Book Award, the Japan Talkyō Publishing Culture Picture Book Award, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Children's Welfare Culture Award. It is not only a pinnacle of Japanese picture books but also a classic among world picture books.
A tall tree is filled with cute red apples. Little Mouse is very hungry and wants to eat them. If only he could fly like a bird, climb trees like a monkey, or have a long nose like an elephant—how wonderful that would be! Seeing other animals use their special skills to pick the apples one by one, Little Mouse feels envious. He tries to jump like a kangaroo but can't jump very high. He tries to ram the tree like a rhino but ends up with a bruised nose and face. Although the sea lion doesn't have the same skills as the other animals, when it uses its amazing ball-juggling trick to toss Little Mouse up into the tree, the two of them work together to get the apples.
The story has an unexpected yet delightful ending. As children turn the pages and meet the many animals, each with its own adorable traits, they guess who will appear next. Will Little Mouse get the apple? How will he get it? The small suspense pulls them page by page. A successful work surprises its readers. When they see the image of Little Mouse being tossed high into the air by the sea lion, they burst into satisfied laughter—Ah, so that's how it works! But there's still something more waiting for them—the small illustration on the copyright page, showing the sea lion juggling Little Mouse and two apples in the air like a circus performer. It serves as a coda, adding a lingering charm to the work. Here, reading becomes a completely joyful experience.
However, good picture books bring children more than just a moment of laughter. Without any explicit moralizing, even young children can grasp something from the story. A little boy in Japan, who was the shortest in his kindergarten (children are very sensitive, you know!), was very self-conscious about it. After reading "Mouse Who Wants to Eat an Apple," he said, "If you just think of a way, being small doesn't matter." This book became his favorite. The boy understood the deeper meaning hidden in the story.
Accepting oneself and one's nature, rather than competing, is more important than ever in modern education. This is something we should teach children. The message we read in "Mouse Who Wants to Eat an Apple" is a valuable lesson. All works of art, no matter how simple, should contain some level of meaning. Children's books are no exception. Subtle messages often stay with people longer than forceful teachings.