The Great Cheese Robbery

Gr 1–4—High on a shelf in an old junk shop sits a dusty bottle with a small ship inside. When the shop closes for the night, the ship's tiny pirate crew comes out to find adventure. The ship's boy, Button, wakes to find their cat Jones has been taken by an angry gang of mice who live in the shop's baseboard. The crew must travel far and wide to the icy land of Fridge to gather enough cheese to pay their ransom. Along the way, Button and his friends encounter the shopkeeper and his slobbery dog; endure endless tall tales from their crewmate, Old Uncle Noggin; and fill themselves nearly to the brim from a new bag of groceries. Working together, they find ways to navigate through their giant-size environment and outsmart the mice to retrieve their cat. The book's rough, sketch-style illustrations shed light on the smallness of the pirates while capturing some of their most exciting and humorous exploits. While the story does have moments of adventure, the pace can be slow and the plot often lacks the clarity, consistency, and explanation that is necessary for comprehension. The characters are somewhat flat and the time line and layout of the junk shop are foggy at best.