In their fifth quiet adventure, Mouse wants to play in the newly fallen snow; Mole doesn't. Mouse lures Mole out of his oak tree by creating a snowman in his likeness. The story is tender and carefully worded. The pencil and gouache vignettes are as old-fashioned as the text: visually quiet and untouched by modernity. (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Gr 1-3-The fifth title (Houghton Mifflin, 2010) in Wong Herbert Yee's beginning chapter book series about a pair of opposites who are best friends finds the pals at odds over how to cope with wintry weather. Optimistic and peppy Mouse wants to ice skate and sled. Grumpy and sluggish Mole prefers to stay snug and warm in bed. Since Mouse can't play with Mole, she creates a snowy version of him to frolic and skate with. Meanwhile, Mole grows bored in bed and peeks out at Mouse, noticing that her companion bears an uncanny resemblance to him. Misunderstandings ensue until Mole realizes that Mouse's friend is simply a snowy version of him and decides to take part in all the fun. Michele O. Medlin voices Mouse with species-appropriate, albeit sometimes overwrought squeakiness, and Mole with growly gruffness. Onomatopoeic sound effects sprinkled throughout the text are simply spoken by the narrator. Page-turn signals are optional. Yee's ink-and-watercolor illustrations perfectly complement the text. Children will enjoy this story about friendship and the winter adventures of an unlikely pair.-Jennifer Verbrugge, Dakota County Library, Eagan, MN (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Yee continues his Mouse and Mole series with another winning installment, which opens on a winter morning. Once again, the best friends' opposite personalities create friction: Mouse can't wait to enjoy a day of sledding and skating, while Mole prefers to stay in bed. But after a farcical, mistaken-identity scene with a snowman, the friends come together for outdoor fun, followed by fireside tea and cookies. As in the series' previous titles, catchy rhymes, brisk dialogue, onomatopoeic sounds, and winsome ink-and-watercolor illustrations will easily draw new readers to this seasonal, episodic friendship story.--Engberg, Gillian Copyright 2010 Booklist

Yee follows his Geisel Honoree Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends (2009) with a four-chapter story told through controlled text and charming litho-penciland-gouache illustrations characterized by gentle humor and great warmth in the characters' relationship, if not in their snowy surroundings. Mouse is delighted by a fresh snowfall and rushes to her friend's house to invite him out to play. Mole thinks that "[b]ed is the place to be on a day like this," and is none too pleased to be disturbed. Undaunted, Mouse ventures out into the "winter wonderland" and builds a Sno-Mole to keep her company. Bored Mole eventually joins her and later builds a Sno-Mouse of his own. After much fun together: "I feel like a Mouse-cicle," says Mouse, and Mole responds, "I feel like a Mole-cicle." The bundled-up friends against the wintry background make an endearing complement to the quiet humor of the story. The vignettes are sprinkled throughout, breaking up the lines of text and giving young eyes a place to rest as they work. A tea-and-cookie retreat provides a cozy ending to a splendid beginning reader. (Early reader. 5-8)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.