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The Fox in the Library
Fox didn't come to the library to read a book--he came to catch a mouse! But Mouse offers the fox a book, Fox gets all sorts of creative new ideas. Like eating chickens! Until Chicken points out that chicken bones are dangerous. But then all the animals must band together when the chicken eating, hating-Farmer walks into the library.
• The adorable antics of Fox should be of interest to all booklovers…librarians, booksellers, and parents! • Books about books and libraries (such as Library Lion) have a built in appeal.
• The adorable antics of Fox should be of interest to all booklovers…librarians, booksellers, and parents! • Books about books and libraries (such as Library Lion) have a built in appeal.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
3 people are currently reading
155 people want to read
About the author
Lorenz Pauli
40 books5 followersLorenz Pauli is a Swiss pre-school educator and author of children's books.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews
May 19, 2017
HAPPY BIRTHDAY GREG!!!
i have added my own review to the end of this, but it's not as good as maggie's
maggie's review:
AT FIRST I DID NOT THINK IT WOULD BE COMFY. "THIS BOOK IS TOO POINTY," I YELLED.
BUT THEN I PLOPPED DOWN AND IT WAS LESS POINTY
AND THEN I FALLED ASLEEP SO I THINK IT IS A VERY GOOD BOOK.
it's pretty hard to follow that beautiful creature, but i will try to give my version of a review. i saw this book at mcnally jackson when we were there during the adventure a couple weeks back. and i said "FOX!!! BOOKS!! GREG LIKES FOX, I LIKE BOOKS!" and i bought two copies, because it would be silly to just buy one and borrow greg's. but it was cheap and i like to give mcnally jackson my money, so i wrote off my silly impulsive behavior as "supporting bookstore," but i probably could have gotten by with just borrowing greg's copy. it's not a bad book, it's just kind of unfocused. it's about a fox who learns about the wonders of reading and the library from a mouse, who is pretty generous with the lessons, considering the fox's intentions were to eat her at the beginning of the book.
i enjoy the artwork, as the hungry fox looks at books:
takes books home with him:
and returns a few nights later with a chicken held prisoner in his mouth which he then forces to do research for him and read aloud its findings on a chilling subject matter: are chicken bones hazardous to foxen? rude!
and somehow, in the middle of this abduction, they both peacefully drift off to sleep, cuddling a little.
and when they wake up, the two of them come to a sort of mutually beneficial arrangement where everyone wins and no one gets eaten.
and then it just kind of ends with no real resolution.
i'm not really sure what the message is here. mouse behaves like one of those shrill bossy librarians we were taught in library school not to be - alienating the patron with rules rules rules - and the rules are also the opposite of what i learned in library school. what kind of library has ten-book limits for borrowing books or actually WANTS patrons to reshelve their books? or distributes library cards to animals?? none of these things were part of my MLS education. and then, when fox asks for help, mouse says she is too busy and cuts his education short, making him fend for himself. which is bad librarian behavior. not that mouse is actually a librarian because she is a mouse for goodness' sake, but she's certainly acting like an authority figure, so you gotta wonder what kind of a stake she has here.
so, it's a cute book, but it coasts on its pictures and the text is lacking in depth.
greg reviewed it, too!
i have added my own review to the end of this, but it's not as good as maggie's
maggie's review:
AT FIRST I DID NOT THINK IT WOULD BE COMFY. "THIS BOOK IS TOO POINTY," I YELLED.
BUT THEN I PLOPPED DOWN AND IT WAS LESS POINTY
AND THEN I FALLED ASLEEP SO I THINK IT IS A VERY GOOD BOOK.
it's pretty hard to follow that beautiful creature, but i will try to give my version of a review. i saw this book at mcnally jackson when we were there during the adventure a couple weeks back. and i said "FOX!!! BOOKS!! GREG LIKES FOX, I LIKE BOOKS!" and i bought two copies, because it would be silly to just buy one and borrow greg's. but it was cheap and i like to give mcnally jackson my money, so i wrote off my silly impulsive behavior as "supporting bookstore," but i probably could have gotten by with just borrowing greg's copy. it's not a bad book, it's just kind of unfocused. it's about a fox who learns about the wonders of reading and the library from a mouse, who is pretty generous with the lessons, considering the fox's intentions were to eat her at the beginning of the book.
i enjoy the artwork, as the hungry fox looks at books:
takes books home with him:
and returns a few nights later with a chicken held prisoner in his mouth which he then forces to do research for him and read aloud its findings on a chilling subject matter: are chicken bones hazardous to foxen? rude!
and somehow, in the middle of this abduction, they both peacefully drift off to sleep, cuddling a little.
and when they wake up, the two of them come to a sort of mutually beneficial arrangement where everyone wins and no one gets eaten.
and then it just kind of ends with no real resolution.
i'm not really sure what the message is here. mouse behaves like one of those shrill bossy librarians we were taught in library school not to be - alienating the patron with rules rules rules - and the rules are also the opposite of what i learned in library school. what kind of library has ten-book limits for borrowing books or actually WANTS patrons to reshelve their books? or distributes library cards to animals?? none of these things were part of my MLS education. and then, when fox asks for help, mouse says she is too busy and cuts his education short, making him fend for himself. which is bad librarian behavior. not that mouse is actually a librarian because she is a mouse for goodness' sake, but she's certainly acting like an authority figure, so you gotta wonder what kind of a stake she has here.
so, it's a cute book, but it coasts on its pictures and the text is lacking in depth.
greg reviewed it, too!
February 12, 2015
Karen bought me this book recently because it had cute pictures in it.
Apparently it’s come to my attention that some people don’t like this book, because it does things like teaches untruths about the library and ‘ends abruptly’.
Whatever.
Ok, this starts with a fox chasing a mouse. The mouse ducks into a library and then seems to fool the fox into not eating him because that’s not the kind of thing that you would do in a library. There is some twisting of logic and the fox seems to go along with it and discovers books instead.
Everyone whose ever read just about any fairy tale or fable knows that this is bullshit (opps, sorry for cursing in a review for a children’s book). What kind of fox would fall for this kind of thing? This is the kind of argument that foxes throughout the ages in literature have been making to get lions to jump off of cliffs and other hapless but larger animals do their bidding.
But whose ever heard of a mouse tricking a fox this way? Totally unbelievable.
If I were you and you don’t want the book spoiled, I’d stop here. I don’t want to use a spoiler tag for a book that has less words than this whole review so far.
The book ends the the fox befriending a chicken who can read to him (how do chickens know how to read, and if mice and chickens can read why the hell can’t a fox read?). To the mouse’s horror the chicken and fox loot the library of books and the book ends with them reading their stolen books together.
The fox has some serious issues with the idea of sharing, which makes perfect sense since he’s a wild animal.
The ending is abrupt, but I’m pretty sure it’s not going to end well for everyone but the fox. Karen and I were in a bit of a disagreement over how to interpret the book, but I’m fairly sure that the once the fox gets this whole reading thing under control and the chicken has finished with teaching him this new skill he will use the skill to maybe read the cookbook you see the farmer carrying around on how to cook chickens to eat his former friend.
If he doesn’t kill and cook the chicken, it’s probably pretty certain that the greedy and selfish fox who has no problem stealing (or taking out way to many at a time—and you never hear of him returning any of the earlier stuff he had taken) will probably decide his teacher will be a good meal.
I’m going to make a guess that he’s going to go back and eat the mouse. Why? Because he’s an easy meal with all his hanging out at the library learning magic tricks (how does a mouse have the eye-paw coordination or even any of the necessary dexterity to do magic tricks anyway?).
And then the fox will be happy because he has lots of books, can read and has had a couple of nice meals. He will later probably found this village and live happily ever after with his fox friends!
http://www.boredpanda.com/zao-fox-vil...
Apparently it’s come to my attention that some people don’t like this book, because it does things like teaches untruths about the library and ‘ends abruptly’.
Whatever.
Ok, this starts with a fox chasing a mouse. The mouse ducks into a library and then seems to fool the fox into not eating him because that’s not the kind of thing that you would do in a library. There is some twisting of logic and the fox seems to go along with it and discovers books instead.
Everyone whose ever read just about any fairy tale or fable knows that this is bullshit (opps, sorry for cursing in a review for a children’s book). What kind of fox would fall for this kind of thing? This is the kind of argument that foxes throughout the ages in literature have been making to get lions to jump off of cliffs and other hapless but larger animals do their bidding.
But whose ever heard of a mouse tricking a fox this way? Totally unbelievable.
If I were you and you don’t want the book spoiled, I’d stop here. I don’t want to use a spoiler tag for a book that has less words than this whole review so far.
The book ends the the fox befriending a chicken who can read to him (how do chickens know how to read, and if mice and chickens can read why the hell can’t a fox read?). To the mouse’s horror the chicken and fox loot the library of books and the book ends with them reading their stolen books together.
The fox has some serious issues with the idea of sharing, which makes perfect sense since he’s a wild animal.
The ending is abrupt, but I’m pretty sure it’s not going to end well for everyone but the fox. Karen and I were in a bit of a disagreement over how to interpret the book, but I’m fairly sure that the once the fox gets this whole reading thing under control and the chicken has finished with teaching him this new skill he will use the skill to maybe read the cookbook you see the farmer carrying around on how to cook chickens to eat his former friend.
If he doesn’t kill and cook the chicken, it’s probably pretty certain that the greedy and selfish fox who has no problem stealing (or taking out way to many at a time—and you never hear of him returning any of the earlier stuff he had taken) will probably decide his teacher will be a good meal.
I’m going to make a guess that he’s going to go back and eat the mouse. Why? Because he’s an easy meal with all his hanging out at the library learning magic tricks (how does a mouse have the eye-paw coordination or even any of the necessary dexterity to do magic tricks anyway?).
And then the fox will be happy because he has lots of books, can read and has had a couple of nice meals. He will later probably found this village and live happily ever after with his fox friends!
http://www.boredpanda.com/zao-fox-vil...
February 18, 2017
Neo enjoyed seeing fox discover the library and all its resources. He loved to wander the shelves and find books like this!
January 6, 2023
Šiandien vėlai guldžiau dukrytę miegoti... Norėjosi trumpos istorijos ir pati dukrytė parodė knygelę, kurią perskaityti🙂 Pirmąkart skaičiau, bet mažoji taip juokėsi. Už suteiktas geras emocijas skiriu 5 balus ❤️
January 3, 2018
So eine süße und herzerwärmende Geschichte! Mit Bibliotheken kann man mich ja immer begeistern und wenn dann noch ein lernfähiger Fuchs dabei ist, ist das ein bisschen wie Liebe!
November 27, 2019
Fox finds lots of items in the library, but he doesn't follow procedures. Mouse apparently didn't know all the rules himself because he told Fox to reshelve a book. Since the book's original publication was European, perhaps rules differ in the author's country. Cute book. Illustrations are mediocre.
October 30, 2019
4 už iliustracijas, ę už tekstą
knyguziurkes.wordpress.com/2019/10/30...
knyguziurkes.wordpress.com/2019/10/30...
February 16, 2023
Gal ir visai nieko, bet neypatinga mums :)
March 4, 2022
Un libro maravilloso. Un ratón escapa de un zorro que lo anda persiguiendo, refugiándose en la librería y como Sherezada, escapa de la muerte al engancharlo con una historia. Le da un libro, pero el zorro no puede leer.
Termina enseñándole una gallina que iban a hacer caldo. Me hace total sentido que la gallina sepa leer y el zorro no...será que la vida más sedentaria de la gallina le ayuda a eso...jajaja.
Preciosos dibujos (¿o se dice ilustraciones?)
Termina enseñándole una gallina que iban a hacer caldo. Me hace total sentido que la gallina sepa leer y el zorro no...será que la vida más sedentaria de la gallina le ayuda a eso...jajaja.
Preciosos dibujos (¿o se dice ilustraciones?)
November 17, 2016
Any book that celebrates libraries is a good book in my book.
December 14, 2019
Vėl aš Akro Maximoj, vėl vaikiškų knygų skyriuj. Vėl skaitau stovėdama.
November 27, 2024
Uma senha para a "bibioteca" (Nanabooks, 2024)
July 1, 2024
Eine Maus & ein Fuchs in der Bibliothek.
Die Maus überrumpelt den Fuchs immer wieder und lehrt ihn die Liebe zur Bibliothek.
Die Maus überrumpelt den Fuchs immer wieder und lehrt ihn die Liebe zur Bibliothek.
July 11, 2023
Loved this amusing twist on media literacy. Support your local library!
July 3, 2018
This entire book was a riot! Beginning with a hungry fox chasing his meal into a library and ending with big dreams of living adventures through the texts each animal finds in the library, this book was hilarious and fun while introducing the reader to the worth of a local library. I would highly recommend this enchanting tale :)
September 3, 2013
Cute pictures but a little too didactic. Also, Mouse should know better than to tell Fox to put the library books back, as that is a pretty big patron no-no in libraries.
October 11, 2013
I didn't like this book. It didn't start at the beginning, was awkward to read, and taught poor library manners.
March 29, 2015
Wie kann man das nicht mögen?^^
April 17, 2022
This was fine.
Though I was really impressed with how it was used in my library to explain library services to children.
Though I was really impressed with how it was used in my library to explain library services to children.
October 14, 2025
3.5/5
You absolutely must read Greg and Karen's reviews (they're the highest ranked). They're better than the book, which is a little meandering. The fox wants to make a meal of the mouse but the mouse says no, this is the library. You chased me here so you have to read a book. Books give you ideas!
Fox can't read but he sees chickens in the book and decides chicken is a good idea. He returns with a chicken, a question, and a desire to read.
Anyway, things happen and there doesn't seem to be much of a through-line but I loved the chicken and fox falling asleep together and the ending with the fox reading books with chickens. Apparently, the chicken has taught him how to read.
If anything, I would guess the point of this book is that once you discover reading, you won't want to stop. That's certainly true for some of us!
You absolutely must read Greg and Karen's reviews (they're the highest ranked). They're better than the book, which is a little meandering. The fox wants to make a meal of the mouse but the mouse says no, this is the library. You chased me here so you have to read a book. Books give you ideas!
Fox can't read but he sees chickens in the book and decides chicken is a good idea. He returns with a chicken, a question, and a desire to read.
Anyway, things happen and there doesn't seem to be much of a through-line but I loved the chicken and fox falling asleep together and the ending with the fox reading books with chickens. Apparently, the chicken has taught him how to read.
If anything, I would guess the point of this book is that once you discover reading, you won't want to stop. That's certainly true for some of us!
March 29, 2018
Cute story about a hungry fox who chases a mouse into the library. The mouse then points the fox towards books where foxes eat other animals, rather than mice. Fox cannot read but he learns from the pictures and comes back for audiobooks, etc, this time with a chicken he has captured but isn't quute sure what to do with...
A cute picture book with energetic illustrations. It features foxes, books and libraries so I was bound to like it! Some things are not explicitly stated in the text which could be confusing for younger readers, but I think that this is a good opportunity to slow down, really look at the illustrations and train your/their visual literacy by 'reading' the images.
A great book to introduce how we should/shouldn't behave in the library!
A cute picture book with energetic illustrations. It features foxes, books and libraries so I was bound to like it! Some things are not explicitly stated in the text which could be confusing for younger readers, but I think that this is a good opportunity to slow down, really look at the illustrations and train your/their visual literacy by 'reading' the images.
A great book to introduce how we should/shouldn't behave in the library!
March 29, 2024
Lorenz did an amazing job capturing the beauty of literature. When encouraging reading, motivation is not enough, there must be more powerful drives to outweigh the temptations to do something else. This is the essence of this book- why we read what we read and what keeps us turning pages! My son and I love this book so much that we purchased both the English-translated and Chinese-translated versions.
Kathrin's illustration is such a delight. The expression is so vivid and the details are handled with care. I bet all the animal lovers would like this illustration style!
Kathrin's illustration is such a delight. The expression is so vivid and the details are handled with care. I bet all the animal lovers would like this illustration style!
October 22, 2024
Jeg er en sucker for bøger, der handler om bøger - og selvfølgelig også bøger, der handler om (vigtigheden af) biblioteker. Jeg kunne også godt lide den her - også selvom den portrætterer en gammel fortælling om biblioteket (og bibliotekarer) som værende et sted, hvor man skal være HELT stille og ikke må andet end at sidde roligt og læse. Dog synes jeg ikke, at portrætteringen er værre, end at man hurtigt kan tale med sit barn om, at sådan er det ikke længere - og slet ikke på folkebiblioteker, hvor der helt naturligt er et dertilhørende børnebiblioteket med større rum til udfoldelse.
September 30, 2017
9/30/2017 ** Fun. This would be a good read-aloud in the first few lessons in the library. In the context of a mouse > fox > chicken > farmer hunting cycle, Fox is introduced to the library, the need to borrow, and the need to return materials in good shape. Mouse also teaches Fox to look for books on different topics.
April 2, 2022
This was such a gorgeous book with a great storyline. However, I felt that the ending was left unfinished and rushed without a clear ending that young children could grasp. The illustrations were cute also.
July 8, 2025
If you see this before reading, DON'T DO IT!!! Whatever story your imagination was sparked to envision from the adorable cover is guaranteed to be better than the story you'll actually get. Don't say I didn't warn ya.
November 15, 2016
I did not appreciate how the materials were taken out of building. I would add lots of extra commentary about how to treat library materials. Although, I did enjoy the illustrations.
July 16, 2017
upsetting. are they even going to return the books???
August 17, 2018
A 1001-Night animal version kind of story.
March 25, 2019
Preschoolers loved it
Displaying 1 - 30 of 73 reviews