All Because of the Tail

Description: "In a park full of squirrels, it's hard being a mouse. Is a big, fluffy tail what it takes to make a friend? Tullio will try anything to find out."--Page 4 of cover.

Brief description: Maria Luisa Di Gravio was born in Rome, Italy, where she still lives with her partner and their cat (who swears she never chased Tullio). She spends her days bringing stories to life through illustration, but in her free time, she is usually out exploring the world, one walk at a time. It was during a walk in the woods, looking for a squirrel, that the idea for this book was born. Why wasn't she looking for a mouse as well? They're not so different from squirrels...except for the tail. What if mice used hairpieces as faux tails? What would happen? Step by step, question after question, Tullio's tale took shape.

Review Quotes:

PreS-Gr 1-Sometimes labeled rats with tails, squirrels here are fed and allowed to climb on humans. In a sentence that may suffer a bit from the translation, Tulio the mouse asks why the squirrels "get stuffed with nuts, and not me" so when people "shout and scream" at him, the fault must be his wormlike tail. He decides to buy a red-brown wig, or cover, for it so that it looks like the squirrels' coats (his fur is gray). Confidence boosted, he fails to notice that the wig has fallen off, and approaches a girl who finds him cute-especially with his real tail. He gets a peanut, an instant friend, and dollhouse for a home. As in her illustrations for Stephen Wunderli's Dear Moon, Di Gravio's style features uncluttered color-block pictures, here in mostly pale shades against white. The panel where Trulio's tail detaches is small, hard to decipher, and easy to miss.
VERDICT Even though it downplays the one moment of drama, this low-key book will find some readers who need the message that the right friend will accept you as you are.