Charlie & Mouse & Grumpy by Laurel Snyder, illustrated by Emily Hughes

When I first encountered Snyder and Hughes’ first Charlie & Mouse title, I was delighted! Not only does the book support beginning readers in many important ways, it’s also set in Hawaii and features biracial brothers. Two things I’ve never encountered in a beginning reader title (please comment if you know of any!). For more about the first title, check out Elisa Gall’s wonderful post from earlier this year.

So imagine my joy when I found out there was to be a second book, and that it would be published in the same year! In this second title Charlie and Mouse’s bespeckled grandfather, affectionately known as Grumpy, comes to visit. Whereas the first book shared neighborhood adventures, the four episodic stories in the second book all take place inside Charlie and Mouse’s house. First, the siblings meet Grumpy at the door and talk about how Charlie is getting big; Mouse admits he’s only getting medium. The next morning, the brothers are excited to pounce on a sleeping Grumpy, but he’s already awake! Later, the boys enjoy a “Grumpy Night” while their parents go on a date, filled with pizza, forts, movies, and bedtime songs. All too soon it’s time for Grumpy to leave, but Grumpy tells the sad boys that, “Sometimes, it has to rain. So that you can be happy when the sun comes out again.”

The plot of each episode is subtly built around repetition so that readers gain confidence with the completion of each chapter. Italics are used sparingly and always to show readers something of import. For instance:

 “And how many hot dogs can you eat?”
asked Grumpy. “When you are medium?”
“You can still eat three hot dogs,” Mouse said.
“But not with mustard. Mustard is not medium.” 

Using the same soft and muted colors as the first book, Hughes’ graphite and Photoshop illustrations never overwhelm the text. Instead, they set the tone, provide visual context clues, and give insight into character relationships and emotions. No small feat!

There’s also a lot to be admired in the design and layout. The slightly wider trim side allows for truly glorious amounts of white space on all sides of the text. Line breaks are thoughtful and logical. This is especially important with so much dialogue and the quotation marks that go along with it.

All of these elements combine to create four poignant and gently humorous vignettes that draw readers like a cozy, comforting charm. When it comes down to it, both books are strong Geisel contenders and I’d be hard pressed to say which one I like more. Might this be a year when two books from the same series are recognized by the Geisel Committee?