Three Clever Mice: Folktales

This amiable collection consists of three folktales about mice adapted by the author of The Blabbermouths. ``Will You Marry Me, Miss Mouse?,'' a slender but diverting vignette from Turkey, stars a discerning creature who finds a suitable mate--and learns the true value of his companionship. Unfortunately, the tale has been rather culturally homogenized; references to a local coffeehouse are the only remaining evidence of its origin. The second offering, ``The Sun, the Cloud, the Wind and the Wall,'' retains more of its Japanese flavor: here parents find a spouse for their daughter surprisingly close to home. (The winning innocence of this storyline has made it a recent favorite: three picture book versions have been published within the last year.) The Nepalese ``Mouse's Children''--perhaps the most substantive of the three selections--preserves its native origins while offering the stuff of classic fairy tales: tigers and peacocks, diamonds and rubies, an evil king who sets the hero three Herculean tasks to spare his mother's life. Although Gourbault's ( The Little Girl and the Dragon ) softly colored drawings do not fully evoke the artistic traditions of the countries represented, the low-key charm of their personable characters brightens these scenarios without becoming intrusive. Ages 5-up. (Mar.)