Book Thoughts: The Rescuers 02: Miss Bianca (Sharp)

• mice embark on a quest to save an 8-year-old girl after her kidnapping
• convo: a male mouse briefly dresses as a female so he can protect his friend, but he is quickly found out and leaves; various alcoholic drinks mentioned; occasional whipping mentioned; a witch mentioned (but not an actual)
• language: x2 stupid, wench (as in little girl, not derogatory)

Type: chapter book
Ages: 7-10
Author: Margery Sharp
Illustrator: Garth Williams

A lesser known sequel! If you have read and enjoyed The Rescuers (see my review here), you might appreciate this continuation of the mice’s adventures.

You may notice the age minimum bumped up some. This was solely due to an increase in mistreatment/violence, though a very small increase. Regarding the “whippings,” that refers to a few instances of the mean lady smacking the girl’s wrist once with a cane. Horses are mentioned to have kicked men to death. There is an implication that certain dogs attack, kill, and eat children. Lastly, the girl is generally treated poorly–undernourished, always cold, etc.

As was the case with Book 1, this made for a good read-aloud! Sharp’s sentence structures just roll off the tongue with her delightful vocabulary and turns of phrases. I believe my children liked the first book better, but we did indeed enjoy both.

If I read further into the series, I’ll link to their reviews below. Happy reading!

Review for Book 1: The Rescuers
Review for Book 3: The Turret