Ten Little Mice

by Joyce Dunbar, Maria Majewska (Illustrator)

Ten mischievous mice play happily outside until, one by one, they scurry home in this delightfully illustrated reverse counting book.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

28 pages, Paperback

First published March 15, 1990

About the author

Joyce Dunbar is an English author of over seventy children’s books, best known for Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go To Sleep, This Is The Star, and the Mouse and Mole series. Born in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, she studied English at Goldsmiths College before teaching drama until hearing loss led her to write full time in 1989. Her first children’s book appeared when she was 35, followed by works such as Mundo and the Weather-Child, which explored the experiences of a deaf child and earned critical recognition. Her stories have been adapted for stage, television, and interactive media, with Mouse and Mole becoming a 26-part animated series. She has also been an advocate for deaf awareness, cycling across Cuba for charity. Dunbar lives in Norwich.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ten little mice make for home in this countdown picture-book from author Joyce Dunbar and illustrator Maria Majewska. Starting out together in a garden, and moving to various other locales over the course of the day - an underground tunnel, a little pool, the sheep pasture - the mice decide, one by one, to seek their cozy nests. By the time night falls, they are comfortably snoozing...

First published in 1990, Ten Little Mice is the first book I have read from Dunbar, but the third, after Oscar Mouse Finds a Home and A Friend for Oscar Mouse , from Majewska. I tracked it down, as it happens, because I enjoyed her artwork in those other murine tales. She certainly seems to enjoy depicting mice! This one is a cute little tale, with rhythmic text and beautiful illustrations. I particularly enjoyed the way in which the artist made sure to make each mouse figure distinctive. Recommended to fans of Maria Majewska, and to anyone looking for fun, beautifully-illustrated counting books.

[The Library Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is so much to enjoy in this book! Count down the mice and notice all their different colored coats. Look for the snails, butterflies and other small creatures. Marvel at the underground scene with the roots hanging down from the ceiling. And read the rhymes as ten little mice make their way from woods and fields to their "cozy nest". A winner for preschoolers.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ridiculously gorgeous illustrations for a rare 'counting down' book. My mother, sons, and I all loved this. Wish I still had our copy.

[Victoria Ferrari]

illustrazioni bellissimissimissimissime

[Syed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ten naughty little mice
This is a simple and easy to read book with nicely detailed illustrations which complement the text. Helme Heine’s book is about ten little adventurous mice who, one by one, disappear from the story. The book is quite fun to read, and I would suggest and recommend it to younger and earlier readers. There are many rhyming words too. At a young age many children have pets, this book helps to address a death, albeit subtly. A cross-curricular link can be made with numeracy as the numbers decrease. The curious and mischievous mice decrease in number after a new situation occurs but eventually the last mouse gets pregnant and has babies. It is an enjoyable book and is filled with comical illustrations.

[Carolynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful pictures of mice in a barley field, underground, in a bean field (who knew a bean field could be so beautiful? Yeats, maybe.) elevate the undistinguished rhyming text. In a variation on "Ten Little Indians" mice depart one habitat after another until they all end up in their cozy nest. Repeating phrases make this a good predictable book for young readers.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this is a charming counting book. I like the fact that the mice are also illustrated in a variety of colors to indicate that they might not be wild mice.

[Bree · Rating 2 out of 5]

Notes:
pictures are really cute but the story is dull
reverse counting book