THE RIVER OF CHEESE

In this debut picture book, a cat comes up with a seemingly foolproof plan to catch a mouse.

In a classic tale of pursuit and near capture, a nameless feline finds his tranquil existence in an aging Victorian house rudely interrupted by the appearance of a mouse. As may be expected, he gives chase, dashing past a number of local village residents: an older man, a woman in a green dress, a fox, a baker, a jockey, and more. The race endures for a number of pages until the cat decides to approach the problem with smarts instead of the speed that has failed him thus far: “I’ll get that mouse if it’s the last thing I do, / I’ll think of a plan too good to be true!” He runs to the local cheese shop, whose wares he uses to fuel his massive trap for the mouse. But he doesn’t account for every possibility and he’s taken aback when his scheme goes awry. Lowles’ entertaining tale is told in bouncy, memorable rhymes that are augmented by her repetition of adjectives, like “It was a hot, hot day in an old, old house.” Coelho’s watercolor illustrations are exaggerated and cartoonish, reflecting the story’s wacky tone. But the action-packed plot is slow to arrive to the cat’s final plan, stealing some of the pleasure from these rhymes as they become repetitive in their descriptions of the townspeople, who are mostly white.

An enjoyable feline tale that’s slightly hindered by pacing issues.