The first week of Advent is finished and to start the new week, I thought this book would be perfect as we prepare our hearts for Christmas. A story about a mouse, making room, and the manger that will warm your heart and possibly choke you up a little too. Take a peek at Mortimer’s Christmas Manger by Karma Wilson, illustration by Jane Chapman, 2005.
Mortimer is a little mouse in a house and he lacks for nothing. But he finds his mouse hole to be cold, dreary and a bit creepy. So he searches around the house to see if another suitable home is available. He is shocked to discover a little house that is just his size. And the current residents are nothing by statues, easily pushed out of the shelter so that Mortimer can have a nice, private, sleep.
But each day, Mortimer comes back from scavenging to discover all the figures back in place, in his special new home! Daily he kicks them out, and somehow they come back. Finally, Mortimer happens to be in the stable while the humans of the house are reading a story. He hears the Christmas story and realizes whom the soft bed is actually for.
This little mouse has so much heart! I love the immense emotions Mortimer presents, and I definitely felt the challenge in my own heart of not making room for the little baby of the holiday. The story is written sweetly and compelling and the illustrations are engaging and perfectly Christmasy. I hope you find some room in your Christmas decorations for this little mouse and his message about the manger.
Hope to see you tomorrow on my 25 Days of Christmas Children’s Books countdown!
Three Books a Night 