THE MOLES AND THE MIREUK
adapted by Holly H. Kwon & illustrated by Woodleigh Hubbard
A Korean version of the frequently retold tale of a mouse (e.g., Morimoto's The Mouse's Marriage, 1986) whose proud parents, looking for the mightiest mate for their ``perfect'' child, go from their own king to sun to cloud to wind to a wall that can be undermined by their own kind, with the result that another mouse is deemed the most powerful and appropriate suitor of all. The straightforward story here differs only slightly—in the animals' species and in replacing the wall with the ``Mireuk,'' a monumental stone figure standing by a temple—but Hubbard, who first drew attention with her expressive art for C Is for Curious (1990), provides vibrant, beautifully designed illustrations that effectively interpret the story while offering some delightfully whimsical visual passages. An excellent edition of a perennially amusing tale. (Folklore/Picture book. 4-8)