Poppy's Return (The Poppy Stories) (original 2005; edition 2005)

In the fifth book in the series that began with Poppy (1995), mouse Lilly urgently requests that her sister, Poppy, join her in visiting their childhood home, Gray House. Poppy travels with her rebellious teenage son, Junior, and his enigmatic friend, Mephitis, a skunk. Soon after her arrival, Poppy is hailed as the new family leader and saddled with the seemingly impossible task of saving the rundown house from destruction by the bulldozer that sits nearby. One of the book's main achievements (and an odd one it is, for a children's book) is the portrayal of Poppy's position as a member of the "sandwich generation," caught between the demands of mothering a smoldering teenager and managing an unreasonable father. Whether children will find this challenge of interest is questionable, but series fans will probably read this book just for the pleasure of keeping up with Poppy; they'll enjoy the occasional humor as well.