Mole Had Everything

K-Gr 3—"Mole had everything-one small home, one bed, one pillow, one shelf for books and one cup for tea." And he is perfectly happy with his simple home, with time to enjoy things he loves. Then his friend Emerson comes for tea and Mole discovers that one teacup isn't quite enough. Emerson sighs and shows Mole his home, which has just about everything. He suddenly doubts the quality of his life and sets out on a journey to collect everything, which he pulls along on a multicolored string. After returning home, Mole finds that living with "everything" takes up too much of his time, and he decides to return to his simpler life. All is as it was in the beginning of the book, except that Mole now has two cups for tea with a friend. The story presents a kind of gentle moralizing similar to that found in The Little Prince (Harcourt, 1943), and Mole's flyaway scarf is also reminiscent of the princely space traveler. The paintings are done in muted colors overlaid with ink crosshatching for depth, and the book contains one sturdy gatefold. This is a quiet, contemplative story best suited for one-on-one sharing and a book that will be deeply loved by a few thoughtful children.—Anna Haase Krueger, Antigo Public Library, WI