THE GUARD MOUSE

Clyde, a conscientious mouse, wears the uniform of a guard at Buckingham Palace and patrols the small openings along the walls. When his cousins, the Petrinis, come from New York on a visit, he tucks their three children away in his high bearskin hat and the three adults go sightseeing. They ride the dashboard of a bus to Trafalgar Square, nibble a spot of breakfast at Covent Garden, travel to Big Ben over umbrella tops, and view London Bridge from the hands of the clock. Getting back to the palace in time for work they discover that the bearskin hat and the children are gone, but Scotland Yard quickly clears up the mystery. The changing of the Guard starts a bit late, with Clyde standing "proudly and happily at his post." The mice, tiny and almost featureless yet expressive against the outsized world of real people; London washed in blue for dawn, yellow for early morning, and gray for fog: scenery and contrast of proportions make this fun to look at and Clyde's Britishisms make it fun to listen to. The sea change has softened Mr. Freeman's palette and sharpened his pen, and the result is jolly good.