Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh
Written by Robert C. O'Brien
Illustrated by Zena Bernstein
Reviewed by Tillie (age 9)
This story's main character is Mrs. Frisby. Mrs. Frisby is a mouse who is brown. She has four kids. Her kids' names are Timothy, Cynthia, Martin, and Teresa. The Rats don't come in until the middle of the book.
The story takes place on a farm. The Fitzgibbons own the farm. The Fitzgibbons are people. There are seven people in the family.
The main idea of the story is that Mrs. Frisby and her children have to move. They have to move because Mr. Fitzgibbons is going to plow the field. Mrs. Frisby lives in a cinderblock. The cinderblock is in the cornfield.
If Mrs. Frisby doesn't move, her house will be plowed by Mr. Fitzgibbons' plow. Her son Timothy is sick with pneumonia, so she has to wait until he is better. Mrs. Frisby goes to see a mouse named Mr. Ages. Mr. Ages gives her some medicine for Timothy. He says that it will take at least three days for Timothy to feel better.
On her way home, Mrs. Frisby meets a crow named Jeremy. Mrs. Frisby unties a string from his ankle and they got away just in time. Jeremy tells Mrs. Frisby to go to the owl.
When Jeremy flies Mrs. Frisby to the owl, Mrs. Frisby is very nervous that the owl will eat her, but he doesn't. He tells her to go to the Rats. Mrs. Frisby doesn't want to go, but she gives in and goes.
At the door, she meets a Rat named Brutus. Brutus tells Mrs. Frisby to see Justin. Justin takes Mrs. Frisby to Nicodemus. Nicodemus is a another Rat. Nicodemus tells her how they got to live in the rosebush. Read the story to find out what the rats come up with next.
I like the illustrations because they are very detailed. The illustrations are in black and white. There are illustrations whenever you can't think of what the author is describing.
When I read this book, I felt like I was really there. I also felt the feelings that Mrs. Frisby felt. When I was reading the book, I felt very relaxed because the author made the characters not get ahead of themselves with their thinking.
My favorite part was when Justin went and showed Mrs. Frisby around the rosebush. I liked this part because the Rats had made their own plow. I liked it when Justin introduced the Rats to Mrs. Frisby.
I recommend this book to third graders and up. I think this book would be good for ages nine to fifteen. I think this book is good for kids who like books about animals.