Rating: WORTHY!
This is a short text book, the first of a projected series, with some illustrations by Cristina Birtea, and written by Stuart Anner, aided and abetted by his daughter Kristen. The stories are rooted in a plush toy mouse that they found at Eumundi Markets in Queensland Australia.
Eumundi is a rather reckless female mouse - as those wee mousettes are prone to be, I'm sure you understand. She drives a sporty convertible, and on this day is scheduled for a hot air balloon ride. The balloon takes off unexpectedly, without the pilot on board, and Eumundi, her new friend, the rather prim and proper Julia, and their surprise acquaintance Hammy the hungry hamster, have to deal with the consequences and learn not only to fly the balloon but also to land it safely.
This was a fun romp, and I am sure children will enjoy it, which is why I'm rating it as a worthy read. I do have to add a note of caution though in that Eumundi is definitely too reckless for her own good. I would have appreciated a note of caution here given some of the things she did. It would have been nice to see, for example, Julia as the voice of common sense, and have her reprimand Eumundi for some of the stunts she pulled so that children don't get the idea they can defy gravity with impunity! With that advisory, I recommend this book!
