Product Description

A phenomenal success since its UK publication in 1994, The Story of the Little Mole...has delighted adults and children alike to become an all-time humour classic. This hilarious picture book tells the tale of a little mole who wakes up one morning only to have one of the other animals 'do its business' on his head. The Little Mole then sets out to track down the culprit to exact his revenge in his own little way. This brilliant new board book edition is a fantastic way to introduce children to the amazing world of books.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1765714 in Books
• Published on: 2002-10-07
• Original language: German
• Binding: Board book
• 32 pages

Review
A phenomenal success since its UK publication in 1964, The Story of the Little Mole has delighted children and adults alike. This new board book edition will add to this already sizeable audience.

Customer Reviews

Classic child-focused humor
I first encountered this book when I took a Children's Literature course in college. A bestseller in Germany, it had been banned in the United States because of its subject matter, so our professor had to show us the original German book and translate it for us. After our initial shock wore off, it had our entire class of English majors in stitches!

Basically, someone or something poops on the little mole's head, and the mole (understandably upset) starts going from animal to animal asking if that animal is the one who did it. Each animal says "no" and then shows what their own poop looks like. Eventually, the mole finds out which animal is responsible, and has his revenge. This is VERY similar in style to the P.D. Eastman children's classic "Are You My Mother?" where a baby bird goes from animal to animal looking for his mommy bird - except, of course, the content is a bit more unusual for the average American parent who is used to "Goodnight Moon" or "Where the Wild Things Are." The thing is, though, kids love to learn about bodily functions - especially when they reach the age of potty training.

I actually found the book so amusing that I always kept my eye out for a copy, and years later I managed to track down an English copy here on Amazon! (Note: the original American/English title for the book was "The Little Mole Who Went In Search of Whodunnit"...it looks like they've changed the name this time around.) I ordered it to read to my young son who was 3 years old at the time. He loved it and thought it was the funniest thing ever!

I find this book more tasteful than some of the others of this type - it's matter-of-fact and doesn't try to be crude in any way. It's also educational in the sense of highlighting differences between animals. I think this is a good book to get for a child who is in the potty-training process, when kids tend to get fascinated by the elimination of body wastes...and also for kids who have reached the point where they'll appreciate the humor in the mole's quest and his revenge.

Glorious!
Now this book is GREAT!!!! I don't know if I should really put it in the educational category, but in fact it is - it leaves lots of subjects open for discussion with the young ones

My two daughters adore this book - it is visually rich, the story is great fun, and it is an easy read for adults and children alike. There is also, as I mentioned, a chance for discussion on issues such as why are all these animals 'business' different (as well as discussing a range of euphemisms for 'business')

The story starts with a little mole who puts his head up above the ground only to have some animal go to the toilet on his head. The mole, who is very short sighted and wears thick glasses doesn't see who it was that did this on his head so he goes in search of animals to ask. These include a dove, a goat, a pig, a cow a horse and couple of flies (amongst others) and in fact it is the flys which point him in the right direction at last.

Although I am not one for condoning revenge it is rather funny as the revenge is hardly worth the effort in the end but it makes the mole satisfied and the animal hardly notices the difference.

The drawings are gorgeous, as I said, they look like they have been done in rich colourful pastels so the animals are very alive and with excellent detail.

Kids love this book, for its toilet humour, but also for its natural biology - just why do animals have different business - it is a great introduction to talk about animal diet, circumstances, even flight of birds and things to assit. While they might not understand all the concepts it is a fun way to extend them.

Adults will enjoy this one too

make it your business to love this book
This is one of the cutest books i've ever seen. Not only is it clever and charming but it actually makes kids think about their "business" in a healthy, funny way. The illustrations are adorable and help you really get a sense of the characters' personalities immediately, even if they appear only on one page. Its a short and simple little treat and I highly recommend it for kids and adults alike.