If you give a Mouse a Cookie: An Analysis

What happens if you give a mouse a cookie? This question is thoroughly answered in the fun loving children’s story, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, written by Laura Numeroff and illustrated by Felicia Bond. In this Analysis I am going to summarize and study the structure and content of this story. It opens with a boy offering a cute little mouse a cookie. The mouse does not hesitate to ask for more things to go with the cookie, like a glass of milk, a straw, a napkin, or even a haircut. The story unfolds, taking unexpected twists and turns, and after you are a page or so into the story, you won’t be able to keep yourself from flipping to the next page to see what kind of actions the mouse will cause next. The story is left unconcluded when, at the end of the story (spoiler alert), the mouse just asks for another cookie. This ending asks the question, how will the boy and the mouse get out of this cycle? Leaving If You Give a Mouse a Cookie unfinished gives the readers a chance to ponder a good outcome for themselves, instead of being given a perfect conclusion. Author Numeroff shows how even a seemingly simple task may end up being more complicated than you originally thought. She also teaches the importance of setting limits, even on a good deed.

The use of good diction, sentence structure, and tone help determine the quality of a storybook. The voice of the book If You Give A mouse a cookie is very playful and to the point, which makes it fun, and accessible for young children who are learning to read. Numeroff tells us what the mouse will do, without a doubt, in a quick matter-of-fact voice. This simplistic style not only adds more character to the book, but the short sentences, and basic word choice make it easier for kids to sound out by themselves. The format of the book is also very well done. The Illustrations are beautiful, and very descriptive. For example the emotions of the boy and the mouse are not even mentioned once in the story; you can only see the boys growing tiredness by the expression drawn on his face. Really seeing the story unfold makes the story more engaging where as just describing a scene, could make the story flat or too complicated. The illustrations also helped show the transition from the boy as the main character to the mouse as the main character. In the beginning of the story, the boy is drawn as the main focus on the page, while the mouse is quite small, but as the book goes on the mouse is drawn bigger as it begins to take over the boy’s life. Also, quite often in the story, half of a sentence is on one page of the book, and then the end of the sentence is on the next page. This adds a suspenseful edge to the reading experience, as the reader has to turn the page to quickly see what happens next. The tone of the book is also very ironic. The witty antics between the mouse, and the exasperated little boy seem so silly and ridiculous in storybook form, but surprisingly this book seems to describe a common relationship issue that most people face in their everyday lives. Readers will catch themselves smiling because the issues that can be so complicated in real life can be put so plainly in a children’s book. The book works from the bias that all mice will most definitely act as the mouse in this story did; this is, of course, a silly over-exaggeration, but it gives the book a laid-back and informal feel, which makes the tone welcoming. This is a simple and fun story with a great moral that audiences young and old can enjoy.

The uses of literary devices in If you Give a Mouse a Cookie give it a rhythmic quality. One of these literary devices is the use of repetition. Repetition is not only stylistically appealing, but it also helps get across the storyline in a much more engaging and notable way. The mood that is created by the usage of repetition cannot be achieved through any other device. It makes even a simple sentence sound like a dramatic one, and it enhances the beauty of a sentence by stressing the main point of significance. Repetition often uses words of the same family to express the ideas and emotions in a sentence in an indirect manner. The beauty of reading a piece with repetition in it is the rhythmic balance it creates, while also drawing its readers to the points containing the underlying meanings.  Repetition is a literary device that often works hand in hand with parallelism.  This technique adds symmetry, effectiveness and balance to the written piece. This makes it easier to get into the story, and also keeps the sentences easier to read, which is great for young readers. The words all work very well together, and each sentence flows well into the next. You can see this quality even in the first couple sentences, “If you give a mouse a cookie, he’s going to ask for a glass of milk. When you give him a glass of milk, he’ll probably ask you for a straw.” The elements of the sentences were often grammatically similar, identical in structure, sound, or meter making the impact profound and crisp. Personification was also used effectively in the story. The character of a mouse in children’s story is often known to be cute, playful and innocent which makes this mouse the perfect character for his role in “If You Give A Mouse a Cookie.” Personification also adds an imaginative quality to the story. The mouse is a fun and furry creature that can get away with what he does, because he’s just so small and seemingly innocent.

Over all, the Numeroff is very effective in telling her story. She demonstrates that when someone sets out to do one thing, the situation often turns out to be more complicated; even a seemingly simple good deed, like sharing a cookie. The adorable, yet needy mouse is slowly overwhelming his helpful friend, the boy. The boy is helping the mouse willingly, but the audience cannot help but feel sorry for the him because he sacrifices too much of his time and energy for the well-being of the mouse. It teaches the importance of setting limits, even on being nice. Telling this message through a narrative voice in storybook form was a very good choice for the author. The mouse and the boy are in a dilemma relatable to all ages. Seeing this type of problem in a light and funny atmosphere as portrayed in the book, simplifies the issue, which can make it more understandable and easier to spot and fix. It was very important that the author didn’t put any blame on the mouse or the boy. Both characters were causing a lot of trouble for each other, but they were both equally innocent in the actions, or lack there of. Hopefully with the life lessons taught in the story, people can recognize them in their own lives and grow from them! A young audience allows the writer to write a contagiously fun yet simplistic story with a moral and life lesson that all readers can understand and learn from.