The true story of a mouse who never asked for it

The first book from Enchanted Lion's new imprint centering innovative picture books for older readers, this retelling of a Balearic folktale strips out the moralizing and revives a story of startling violence and insight. When a small, white, red-eyed mouse, "very neat and very hardworking," finds a coin, she buys a cabbage and builds a house for herself out of it. She's subsequently pursued by a series of suitors attracted by her character and her property; after rejecting donkeys, ducks, and cats as too raucous, she marries the "kitten that seemed the most defenseless"--with predictably disastrous consequences. Bold illustrations in neutrals, blood red, and royal blue tell a parallel story that operates as an interpretive cipher and the narrative's key; though a contextualizing note within the volume would doubtless be helpful for some readers, the book's brilliance lies in its intriguing disjunction between word and image. As the narrative advances, accompanied by images of domestic and personal objects instead of donkeys and ducks, the solution to the illustrated puzzle reveals a nuanced feminist interpretation of the original folktale, and the promise of healing through autonomous creative fulfillment. Ages 13--up. (June)

A traditional folktale is reworked into a feminist parable. In this translated work from Spain, Herreros tells the story of a "very neat and very hardworking" white mouse who builds herself a house. Seeing that she is unmarried and a homeowner, various animals aggressively pursue her until she finally agrees to marry the kitten, who "seemed the most defenseless." Her kitten-husband becomes increasingly predatory, emotionally and physically abusing her until, finally, "he ate her all up." A powerful wordless finale of double-page, full-bleed spreads shows a brown-skinned, black-haired woman in a white dress cleaning up and moving on from the aftermath of a violent disturbance in her apartment. Deceptively simple, midcentury-style illustrations use a muted color palette of red, blue, gray, beige, white, and black to focus on the details of domestic objects before widening the lens to the bigger picture. A QR code allows readers to visit a website where they may read the Balearic original and some contextual notes. Without gaining this familiarity with the source material and its cultural connotations, readers may be confused or frustrated by the book's metaphor, including unpacking what it means to ask for it, the text's emphasis on the protagonist's virtuous cleanliness and tidiness, and the choice to illustrate the mouse as paper-white, which risks perpetuating whiteness as a symbol of purity and goodness. An unusual title useful for college classrooms or as a niche gift. (Picture book. 16-adult) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.