The Greatest of All

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Kimmel, Eric A. 1991. THE GREATEST OF ALL : a Japanese folktale. Illustrated by Gioria Carmi. New York, NY : Holiday House. ISBN 082340885

SUMMARY
A mouse father, in search of the mightiest husband for his daughter, approached the emperor, the sun, a cloud, the wind, and a wall before the unexpected visitor finally appears.

ANALYSIS
This is Eric Kimmel's retelling of a classic Japanese folktale, and he does not seem to have wanted to take any chances with the content. As a result, if one is looking for an action packed story with tension and fast pacing, this is not the book to pick up. In the tradition of oral stories, it is very repetitive. As a reviewer, I have a handicap in that I'm not familiar with any other versions of this folktale, and I'm also unfamiliar with many aspects of Japanese culture. For instance, the repetetive dialogue between Father Mouse and each of his prospective son-in-laws seems stilted and formal, but this might be a result of a strong cultural value placed on good manners. The Japanese terms and names in the story were interesting and well placed. The place the story more firmly in its context and make the dialogue flow better. Kimmel's thoughful Author's Note gives the definitions.

The story contains many of the traditional elements of the folktale; Father Mouse goes on a quest, he is anthropomorphic- a talking mouse, and he encounters several anthropomorhic magical beings in his search for "the greatest of all." It is a different type of story in that Father Mouse, a comical and sometimes not very likable character, is also the main character. He is not the villain of the story, but he is the only impediment to his daughter's marraige with the mouse she loves. Father Mouse is proud and stubborn, but in this version of the story, he receives no punishment for these character faults. In fact, in the end, he is more proud than before.

Many folktales are told with shorthand characterizations, actors in the story may not be quite fleshed out because the audience is already familiar with the type; the good hero, the evil villian, the old wise woman and so on. But I thought the characters in this story, with the exception of Father Mouse, were particularly flat. The strongest impressions of character and personality came through in Carmi's illustrations of Sun, Cloud, Wind and Wall. The illustrations and text are seperated in the first edition on two parallel blocks floating in the midst of a tomato-colored page. The border color was distracting and a little ugly, and didn't compliment the illustrations. The illustrations themselves were one or one and half page spreads, with only one two page spread. Carmi used colored pencil and perhaps watercolor in a subdued but warm palatte. Father Mouse wears jewel tone robes and his daughter Chuko wears a bright kimono. Carmi succeeds in usings the illustrations to depict elements of Japanese architecture and culture.

REVIEWS
"Kimmel ( Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock ; Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins ) concisely retells this pleasant if low-key tale of a self-important mouse who lives in the emperor's palace and dresses in fine silk. He refuses to allow his daughter to marry a humble field mouse, announcing that whomever she marries "must be the greatest of all." PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY

"Carmi uses tall frames and details of dress to suggest a Japanese setting; her style is lively and accessible but undistinguished, the illustrations' muted tomato-soup borders more distracting than harmonious. Still, an acceptable setting for a good story." KIRKUS REVIEWS

CONNECTIONS
This book might work well as part of a unit on Japanese culture. The emperor's palace illustration is an example of an historic period of Japanese architecture, and the haiku and caligraphy at the end of the story open a window on two strong cultural traditions. Students might compose their own haikus, and see some examples of Japanese caligraphy.

Of course, the story could also serve as an examply of a Japanese folktale, in a unit of folktales and traditional stories from many different cultures.

A potential discussion question for older students: What are we readers supposed to think of Father Mouse? The book says, "He thought himself a splendid mouse indeed!" (p. 3). Do you think the other characters in the book think as highly of Father Mouse as he thinks of himself? Are there any clues in the story that make you think Father Mouse might be a little silly?