Mice Skating

Lucy the mouse is an outlier: she loves winter—and the wool cap that “kept her heart warm” in addition to her head—but her friends and burrow-mates Mona, Millie, and Marcello plan on hunkering down until spring. After Lucy discovers the magic of ice skating (on homemade pine needle skates, no less), she redoubles her efforts to share winter’s magic with her pals. Cream-colored pages make White’s mouse-size world all the more charming and snug, and readers will enjoy perusing the details of Lucy’s life, such as her sardine-tin bed. Marcello’s habit of speaking in puns is cheesy in multiple senses (“Tired of being prov-alone?” he asks Lucy after she’s spent another day outdoors by herself), but Lucy’s determination and enthusiasm carry the story. Ages 3–up. [em]Author’s agent: Liza Voges, Eden Street Literary. Illustrator’s agent: Nicole Tugeau, Tugeau 2. (Oct.) [/em]