Paper Mice is a 2019 picture book written by Megan Wagner Lloyd and illustrated by Phoebe Wahl. I picked it up because I’m a Wahlflower (a fan of Phoebe Wahl’s work).
The premise here is simple, almost classic: humans make a pair of paper mice, then, somehow, they come alive when the humans are asleep and wander around the house. The most original aspect of this is that though they were made together, when they come alive, “Neither one noticed the other.” Instead, Della goes one way, Ralph another. They explore the house, alone and often afraid.
Della finds a dollhouse and is happy, but Ralph takes a tumble into the cat’s water dish. When he’s drying his tail before the fire, Della pushes him out of the way of a spark.
They become friends. The house isn’t as scary and is much more fun. Not long before morning, they dance, then return to their places between the pages of a book. They fall asleep as the humans wake up.
Wahl’s illustrations are rich with detail and life, but they don’t crackle the way they do in her own work.
This book is solid, but misses out on a lot of opportunity to add energy. (For example, why doesn’t Ralph get weak and sticky when he’s wet? He’s made of paper, after all.)
