 “One small step for a mouse; one giant leap for aviation.” A courageous and intelligent little German mouse, terrified of mechanical mousetraps in his homeland, decides to flee to safety in America. He is inspired by bats (mice with wings), and after several failed attempts, he eventually builds a tiny airplane for his solo transatlantic flight to freedom. His designs are fascinating and reminiscent of Leonardo da Vinci. The realistic-looking little daredevil rodent becomes a mini-celebrity in New York and all of America and inspires a young boy named Charles Lindbergh. Minute details in the natural-toned, watercolor and pencil illustrations of facial expressions, machinery, and architecture are evocative and gorgeous. Aerial views and close-ups of old Hamburg are stunning. Back matter includes A Short History of Aviation with notes about Otto Lilienthal, the Wright brothers, and Charles Lindbergh. mjw |
| Title: Lindbergh: The Tale Of A Flying Mouse Author: Torben Kuhlmann Illustrator: Torben Kuhlmann Publisher: North South Books, New York Copyright: 2014 Original Language: German Translator: Suzanne Levesque Original Title: Lindbergh: Die abenteuerliche Geschichte einer fliegenden Maus Original Publisher: Nord Sud Verlag. Zurich, Switzerland Original Copyright: 2014 ISBN: 978-0-7358-4167-3 Hardcover pages: 96 Age range: 4 up Genre: Picture book Book setting: Hamburg and New York Author’s ethnicity: German Author’s residence: Germany Illustrator’s ethnicity: German Illustrator’s residence: Germany Awards: 2015 USBBY Outstanding International Books Grades 3-5, 2015 Golden Island Award Subjects: Airplanes; Flight; Germany; Hamburg; Lindbergh, Charles A; Mice |
Lindbergh: The Tale Of A Flying Mouse
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In 1934, a young man named Vango on the cusp of taking priestly vows is suddenly made a fugitive. Accused of murder, pursued by police and mysterious others, Vango finds that proving his innocence involves uncovering secrets from his past, taking him from Parisian rooftops to Mediterranean islands to Scottish forests in a hyper-coloured spy-thriller with a backwards-and-forwards timeline. Part of the book’s charm involves historic figures turned into characters – like Hugo Eckener (commander of the Graf Zeppelin) who de Fombelle has written as a friend of Vango and as a quick-witted protester to Hitler’s increasing regime. Snippets of story are also told from the perspective of a young girl who turns out to be Stalin’s daughter. These historic guess-who’s never felt clunky. With a larger-than-life protagonist, Vango will appeal to lovers of daring escapades. The mystery to his identity unravels in the sequel, Vango, Book 2, A Prince Without A Kingdom, published in 2105. ew
German eighth grader, Mike Klingenberg, is a boring kid with no friends. He is left alone for two weeks while his mother is in rehab and his father is away on a “business trip” with his attractive secretary. Andrej Tschichatschow, aka Tschick, is a Russian immigrant, the new kid in school, and also not popular. When Tschick shows up in a stolen beat-up Soviet-era car, the boys head out of Berlin on a road trip adventure across Germany. They have no map, no cell phone, and no plan. They meet some bizarre characters, dodge the police, and travel the autobahn. This is an insightful, exuberant, and highly engaging coming of age novel. mjw
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