Jumping Mouse: A Native American Legend of Friendship and Sacrifice

“Long, long ago, there was a mouse”—a mouse with a dream—newcomer Schroe begins, illustrating her retelling of what she calls an “old Native American tale” (provenance unspecified) with her engaging clay figurines photographed in wild landscapes. The mouse sets out for the High Places, where the old ones say life is good. She meets Grandfather Frog, who rewards her resolve by changing her into Jumping Mouse, whose newly elongated legs will take her farther. Then she meets Brother Buffalo, who has lost his sight, and she helps him at once: “You will now be known as Eyes-of-a-Mouse!” But her sacrifice, she discovers, has taken her own sight. The buffalo and her sense of smell help the mouse continue on. When she meets a wolf who has lost her sense of smell, Jumping Mouse makes another sacrifice, this time imperiling her quest. Just as despair threatens, Grandfather Frog re-appears to help. Though the mechanism through which the mouse changes others’ fates isn’t made clear, her desire for companionship and willingness to sacrifice prove touching. An author’s note discussing Schroe’s Native American mother mentions no specific tribe or background. Ages 4–8. (Nov.)