Edna Miller

Spring had come to the forest, along with the rains, and Mousekins needed to find a new, drier home for himself. Exploring all of the possibilities, he encountered a massive white rabbit, whose thumping warned him when danger was near. Eventually, fleeing before an owl, he discovered a strange garden, complete with flowers previously unknown to him, and a basket full of eggs of an unusual color. When a child appeared to claim the basket, Mousekins fled, while his white rabbit friend followed show more after the child and her companion...

First published in 1986, Mousekin's Easter Basket was the thirteenth title in author/illustrator Edna Miller's fifteen-volume Mouskin series, begun in 1964 with Mousekin's Golden House, and concluded in 1992 with Mousekin's Lost Woodland. I had no idea, picking this title up, that it belonged to such an extensive series, but I am glad to discover it, as I found this entry charming. The narrative is simple, and the artwork lovely. Everything has a naturalistic feeling to it - real animals, out in the real world - even the white bunny, who, with his ribbons of various colors, clearly belongs to the children seen at the end of the story. There is a gentle, innocent quality to the story here, as Mousekin remains enmeshed in his wild, murine world, but briefly encounters the human one, through his visit to the garden. As mentioned, the illustrations are just lovely. Like Carol and Donald Carrick's A Rabbit for Easter, the last "Easter" picture-book I read, this really isn't an Easter story at all, so much as one which occurs at Eastertide. I would recommend it to picture-book readers who enjoy mouse stories. For my own part, I intend to track down other titles about Mouskins. show less

Duck Duck lives on the pond with his mate and guards her and her nest until one day they disappear (due to a fox). Only two ducklings are left, who Duck Duck raises until they migrate in the autumn. Duck Duck stays behind to wait for his mate, but the cold and ice make it difficult for him to survive. He is fed by some kind children and eventually finds a warm chicken barn, where he is able to survive the winter. In the spring, a new mate arrives for Duck Duck.

Duck Duck is a moving story of show more a Mallard duck who loses his family to fox. I appreciate how Miller explores the grief of a duck in a way that feels poignant but not anthropomorphic. With the introduction of the children, this feels like something that might have really happened and observed by the author. The soft, natural colors of the illustrations (and perhaps the theme) are reminiscent of the Disney movie "Bambi".

Content consideration: this might be quite sad for very young children, as its clearly implied that Duck Duck loses his mate and most of his family to the fox. show less

I guess these are just a little too gentle and sweet to still be popular in the libraries. Too bad. I love learning the details of life in the woods and the pictures are so pretty, and educational too (animal tracks carefully drawn). The adventures are perfectly exciting, because we can count on a happy ending. The fox and owl are not evil; they're just hungry and trying to feed their families.

I would have loved these lovely little books when I was a child. The specific details of nature (a "white-footed mouse" and a (domestic) rabbit "bigger than a hare,... much bigger than a cottontail" would have appealed to my love of learning, and the adventures are just exciting enough but still cozy.