''Mouse Noses on Toast'' is a children's book written by

Daren King Laurence Daren King (born 1972 in Harlow, Essex) is an English novelist and children's writer. His debut novel, ''Boxy an Star'', made the shortlist for the Guardian First Book Award and the ten finalists for the Booker Prize in 1999. He won th ...

and illustrated by

David Roberts David or Dave Roberts may refer to: Arts and literature * David Roberts (painter) (1796–1864), Scottish painter * David Roberts (art collector), Scottish contemporary art collector * David Roberts (novelist), English editor and mystery writer ...

, published in 2006. It won the

Nestlé Children's Book Prize Nestlé S.A. (; ; ) is a Switzerland, Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Vaud, Switzerland. It is the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other me ...

Gold Award.Nestlé Children's Book Prize

Plot summary

A young mouse called Paul is so shocked to learn that "mouse noses on toast" are served at a fancy restaurant that he gathers a ragtag group of activists to investigate and protest.

Reception

Reviewers variously commented that it is a "quick" and "easy" read, and a "nice book to read aloud". ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...

'' compared its style of humour to ''

The Magic Roundabout ''The Magic Roundabout'' is an English-language children's television programme that ran from 1965 to 1977. It used the footage of the French stop motion animation show ''Le Manège enchanté'' but with completely different scripts and characte ...

'' and the ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'' said it is "just as engaging as it is loopy". Both the ''School Library Journal'' and ''AuthorLink'' criticised the ending. ''AuthorLink'' called David Roberts' illustrations "cute", and the ''School Library Journal'' said that the "very simple pen-and-ink illustrations ... fit the equally pared down narrative".

References

2006 British novels 2006 children's books British children's novels Children's fantasy novels Children's novels about animals Faber and Faber books {{2000s-child-novel-stub