The Church Mice Adrift (1976)

The fifth installment of Graham Oakley's series of humorous picture-books detailing the adventures of a group of church mice and their cat companion, The Church Mice Adrift sees our favorite rodents evicted from their home in the church vestry by a group of displaced rats (who, the author assures us, are "not really bad fellows, just a little rough"). Predictably, Humphrey pontificates and Arthur deflates, while Sampson the long-suffering comes up with a plan...

I continue to enjoy Oakley's series, which seems to be little known here in the United States, and is long out-of-print. Like The Church Mice Spread Their Wings before it, the humorous disconnect between the mice's perception of their cat companion, and Sampson's actual role as protector and savior, is rather charming. The colorful and very detailed illustrations will engross young readers, who will be rooting for the church mice and their homecoming. ( )