“This charming voyage tale is based on Viva’s ( Along a Long Road ) real-life Antarctic trip, which explains the otherwise unbelievable image of swimming in warm water at the bottom of the world. The distinctive color palette of slate blue–gray, black, cream, and burnt orange provides an otherworldly but extremely attractive vision. The simple story, full of imagination, is punctuated by Mouse’s lists of things that can’t be done on a boat in choppy waters (including draw!) or what to wear in the cold. Readers’ creativity will be spurred by the recurring list structure, allowing them to envision their own additions. Although drawn in minimal style (evoking Viva’s career as a cover artist, creating single, eye-catching images), with a flat, cut-paper feel to the art, beautiful vistas are conjured, especially of the small boat under an open starry sky. The penguins—four different types—are standouts. Like many children, Mouse spends much of his time wanting to go home, until he leaves, then he wants to go back. Readers will, too, again and again.” — Publishers Weekly Can we have pizza now? Join Mouse and a young explorer as they prepare to climb Mount Etna. Help them list what they’ll need: “walking sticks,” “mountain boots,” “sunglasses . . .“ “Can I have pepperoni?” asks Mouse. From sea to snow, young readers will giggle with delight as they experience the magical world drawn by Frank Viva. Over and over again, the bestselling author of Young Frank, Architec t will make them expereince an unforgettable journey to the top of one of the world’s most active volcanoes. 2012 Cybils Award Winner Apartment Therapy’s Best Children’s Books of 2012 “ A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse is a modern-day rendition of the “Are we there yet?” story. A mouse and a boy travel by boat to Antarctica, all the while seeing fun and interesting things. Alas, Mouse just wants to get there, and then, once there, wants to go back home. The story is told in graphic novel format through speech bubbles and gorgeous illustration. While a fun read for children of all ages, the writing works perfectly for children just beginning their adventure as readers. There are plenty of decodable words, many sight words and lots of opportunity for the pictures to help out when the words are unfamiliar. There is a limited amount of text on each page and the font chosen is big and clear. A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse is the perfect trip to take with a new reader. Enjoy!" — 2012 Cybils Awards “From the endpapers, Mouse asks the timeless question of many young travelers, 'Are we there yet?' Inspired by Viva’s experiences traveling to Antarctica aboard a Russian research ship, the oblong picture book offers basic facts about the region (it is cold and penguins live there, for instance), while Mouse tries to figure out when it will finally be time to go home. Viva’s illustrations employ only primary colors, white, black, and gray, but in the best way. Every bit of space is used to tell the story, which is perfectly suited for storytimes, reading aloud, or even reader’s theater. The text is simple enough for fairly new readers to tackle, and interesting. Picture clues are used to help with some of the vocabulary words. This book begs to be shared again and again. Pair it with one of Mo Willems’s 'Elephant & Piggie' books (Hyperion) and bring on the giggles. Outstanding."— School Library Journal “This charming voyage tale is based on Viva’s ( Along a Long Road ) real-life Antarctic trip, which explains the otherwise unbelievable image of swimming in warm water at the bottom of the world. The distinctive color palette of slate blue–gray, black, cream, and burnt orange provides an otherworldly but extremely attractive vision. The simple story, full of imagination, is punctuated by Mouse’s lists of things that can’t be done on a boat in choppy waters (including draw!) or what to wear in the cold. Readers’ creativity will be spurred by the recurring list structure, allowing them to envision their own additions. Although drawn in minimal style (evoking Viva’s career as a cover artist, creating single, eye-catching images), with a flat, cut-paper feel to the art, beautiful vistas are conjured, especially of the small boat under an open starry sky. The penguins—four different types—are standouts. Like many children, Mouse spends much of his time wanting to go home, until he leaves, then he wants to go back. Readers will, too, again and again.” —Publishers Weekly “Viva utilizes basic shapes in a way that reminds me of Eric Carle and I really love his use of primary colors. In short, it’s a really lovely children’s book. If you’re shopping for a preschooler at all this holiday season I’d recommend this book in a second.” —Comixology “Viva’s debut, Along a Long Road , was a New York Times Best Illustrated Book of 2011, and he brings that same visual audacity and forward momentum to his first early reader. Told in full sprea