A PLACE JUST FOR ME

A rodent seeks a room of his own in this Italian import.

Silver resides in a lovely home under an old elm tree with his grandparents, parents, and five siblings. All have unique talents and have scouted out areas to explore them within the bounds of their burrow. But Silver—“the smallest mouse of them all”—wants a place that’s “quiet enough for him to do nothing at all.” That’s hard to come by, so he strikes out, hoping to claim a spot at a friend’s home. But Mole’s house is too dark, Rabbit’s is even more bustling than Silver’s, and Bear’s snoring is too loud. In a bit of a Goldilocks conundrum, with nothing feeling quite right, Silver heads home to discover that his mom has constructed a sweet little loft just for him. The emotional, intimate experience of looking for understanding everywhere and finally finding it in a warm familial hug gives Baldinucci’s simply told, well-paced story universal impact. Berti’s illustrations emphasize that the creatures’ homes are all deeply special to them; the pages are filled with detailed visions of flowery fields and cozy domestic scenes, echoing nothing so much as the exquisite, naturalistic whimsy of Kaya Doi’s Chirri & Chirra series.

A homey tale with a classic storybook feel and a gentle, uplifting conclusion.