At first, Baby Mouse is completely quiet. Mama Mouse greets her baby's first utterance, squeak, with joy, and the second, squeak squeak, with happiness. But the squeaks increase in number until her baby is talking nonstop, and Mama needs "a little quiet." Settling Baby Mouse at the base of the tree where they live, she falls asleep. Baby Mouse spots a baby bird nearby and talks cheerfully until it flies away. Seeing a rabbit, Baby Mouse chatters until it hops away. Next, Baby Mouse talks to a fawn until it falls asleep. Mama Mouse awakens. Where is her baby? Following the distant sound of squeak, squeak, squeak, she finds Baby Mouse and carries her little one home. Reading the story aloud is a pleasure, except for the ballooning number of squeaks in the speech bubbles, a challenge easily met by asking children to help with the squeaking. Created with ballpoint pen and colored pencils, the pleasing illustrations were skillfully created using expressive drawing, cross-hatching, and pale shades of blue and yellow. A simply written, amusing picture book.

The gift of gab proves deeply funny in Hunter-s (Where-s Baby?) earnest portrait of early language acquisition. Baby Mouse starts out as a quiet infant, but after the diminutive mammal utters a first word, then a second, language flows suddenly and inexorably forth. Speech balloons of varying sizes, comically filled with typewritten lines that repeat only the word -squeak,- emanate from Baby Mouse as the youth is fed, carried, and tucked in to bed. When Mama, seemingly in need of a moment-s peace, places her child outside their tree home, the mouse is unfazed. -Baby talked and talked... and talked,- encountering various animals who turn tail, and finally, a young fawn who simply conks out in the face of Baby Mouse-s chatter. In a full spread, elegant ballpoint pen and colored pencil images-which follow finely cross-hatched, grayscale figures atop a sky blue background-show Baby Mouse relaxing upon the snoozing fawn-s back, an enormous word balloon floating above them. When Mama Mouse awakens, panicked, from a nap of her own, Baby Mouse-s squeaks lead her straight to her child-s location-gently instigating a moment of silent succor, and a final image that honors, without judgment, both parties- realities and needs. Ages 3-7. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary. (May)