MOUSEHEART Mouseheart, Book 1

Rats, cats, and mice inhabit a kingdom in the subway tunnels beneath Brooklyn, New York. Deceit, schemes, and warfare ensue. Narrator Kirby Heyborne brings freshness and intimacy to this production. Young listeners will be quickly engaged as Hopper, an unassuming mouse with a white circle around his eye, sets out to reunite with his brother and sister. Heyborne's overall pace is steady. As Hopper reaches into his memory to connect the past to the present, Heyborne's tone is quietly gentle. He also captures Hopper's confusion as he tries to piece together the allegiances of the rats as well as his dismay as he comes to understand how he has played into the escalating tension. Secondary characters, especially icy King Titus and his boisterous son, Zucker, also stand out. A.R. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2014]