Review - Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes

Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes
by Jennifer L. Holm & Matthew Holm
Date: 2016
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book
Pages: 32
Format: e-book
Source: library

Graphic-novel darling Babymouse makes her picture-book debut in a Christmas story... all about cupcakes! (Typical.)

Thank goodness Babymouse ate all of the Christmas cookies her mom made for Santa. Now she can make him something he really wants—CUPCAKES! But wait... what’s that rumbling in the other room? OH NO! A DRAGON!!!!! Can Sir Babymouse defeat her fiery foe and save Christmas?! Or at least save a cupcake or two? Maybe not....

Jennifer and Matthew Holm bring us Babymouse’s very first full-color adventure! With signature Babymouse humor, comic book–style panels, and oodles of pink-frosted cupcakes, new readers and devoted fans alike will find plenty to love.

(synopsis from Goodreads)

I have a feeling that this book will be more popular with fans of Babymouse. I've not read any of those books (though I am familiar with the Holms' work through their Sunny series of graphic novels). Since I'm not familiar with Babymouse, I wasn't sure if what I was seeing was consistent with her character or not. As a standalone, however, with no knowledge of the other books, this one seems a bit weak.

She's a disobedient little mouse, whom I think the authors were trying to make endearing. She has a big imagination, too (as evidenced by her request for a suit of armour for Christmas; she needs it to fight dragons, of course). But the main plot point is her baking some cupcakes, and then eating them all after her mother told her not to touch them. Aside from the fact that it would likely be impossible for any four-year-old to eat a dozen cupcakes in the time it takes her mother to quiet the baby, I didn't think it sent a very good message.

(As an aside, why would you name your child Babymouse? Sure, it's appropriate for the first few years, but after that, such a name is going to be a burden. What if she wants to be a judge or a politician or a doctor? How do you go through life with such an infantilizing name and expect to be taken seriously?)

If you're already a fan of Babymouse and enjoy watching her misbehave, you might like this one. For me, it just didn't impress. I'm not a fan of the art style here any more than I was in the Sunny series. I guess it's a matter of taste.

Premise: 2/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 2/5
Originality: 3/5

Enjoyment: 2/5

Overall: 2.33 out of 5