Beneath the Chipvole Mountains

Beneath the Chipvole Mountains Review

Something strange and awful is happening beneath the Chipvole Mountains, but Muriel the mouse knows nothing about it when she tells her children they’re moving back. Lenny, Vera, and Perry are excited and stunned; their mother rarely talks about their old life in the Chipvoles, in the happy days before their father was killed in a mysterious cave explosion. And so they set out from their cozy nest in the corner of a cluttered tool shed with little idea what adventures, narrow escapes, odd travel companions, and surprising discoveries await them. At first Muriel is suspicious of Byron, an easygoing but ever watchful dog who shares a harrowing train ride with them. The mice children, however, have no such qualms about Uncle Byron. The travelers soon discover they're being watched. Byron nabs the spy: a trembling fox who claims he was sent by the cruel King Cecil. Muriel's happy journey turns into a nightmare when Lenny and Byron are lost. In the end, Lenny learns something about bravery, Muriel about trusting and hoping, and the secret of the Chipvoles is finally revealed. "Beneath the Chipvole Mountains" offers adventure, mystery, and humor to middle grade fantasy readers.