Manxmouse facts for kids

First edition (published by Coward-McCann)

Manxmouse: The Mouse Who Knew No Fear is an exciting children's book written by Paul Gallico in 1968. It tells the amazing story of a special mouse called Manxmouse. He goes on many adventures and meets all sorts of different characters. The biggest challenge for Manxmouse is meeting a Manx cat. Everyone says this cat is meant to eat him!

Manxmouse's Big Adventure

The story begins with an artist who makes things from clay, called a ceramicist. He lives in a make-believe town in England called Buntingdowndale. One night, he wanted to create his best mouse statue ever. But he wasn't paying full attention. He accidentally made a very strange mouse.

This mouse had a fat body, like an opossum. Its back feet were like a kangaroo's, and its front paws were like a monkey's. Instead of small, clear ears, it had long ears like a rabbit's. And these ears were blue on the outside and bright orange inside! The strangest part was that it had no tail. The artist was disappointed at first. But he soon found the statue quite charming. He decided to call it a "Manx Mouse" and keep it. That very night, while the artist slept, the clay statue magically came to life!

The Manx Mouse could think for himself. He decided to call himself Manxmouse. He soon left the artist's house to explore the world. His first meeting was with a creature called a clutterbumph. This monster could change its shape to look like whatever someone feared most. But Manxmouse seemed to have no fear at all. So, the clutterbumph couldn't scare him. Instead, the clutterbumph gave him a warning: "Beware the Manx Cat!"

Manxmouse continued his journey. He met many other interesting characters. These included a billibird, a mother House Cat, and an old cat named One-Eye. He also met Captain Hawk, a fox named Joe Reynard, and a group of hunting dogs. There was also a huntsman named Squire Ffuffer. Later, he met Nelly the Elephant and a little girl named Wendy H. Troy. He even met a tiger named Burra Khan. Manxmouse also encountered a truck driver, a pet-shop owner, and a wax copy of himself at Madame Tussauds. Finally, he met a policeman.

In every meeting, Manxmouse was polite, helpful, and very brave. Almost every new friend he made gave him the same warning. They told him he belonged to the Manx Cat, and that the Manx Cat would eat him.

The Manx Cat Meeting

Eventually, Manxmouse traveled to the Isle of Man. This is where he was finally going to meet the Manx Cat. Manxmouse was surprised by what he found. The Manx Cat was a polite British gentleman! He invited Manxmouse to his home for tea with his family. During tea, the Manx Cat showed Manxmouse an old paper. He called it a "Doom." He said it was a prophecy written 1,000 years ago. It said that a Manx Mouse would come to the Manx Cat to be eaten on a specific date. And Manxmouse had arrived on that exact day! Part of the paper was missing, but it didn't seem important at the time.

Manxmouse and Manx Cat then went to a stadium. A large crowd was there, including everyone Manxmouse had met on his adventures. The policeman Manxmouse had met earlier was in charge. He said Manxmouse should be eaten quickly and without pain. But when it was time for Manxmouse to be eaten, he stood his ground. He bravely challenged the Manx Cat to eat him!

Just then, someone from Madame Tussauds appeared. They had the missing half of the "Doom" document! This other half said something amazing. It said, "But if the aforesaid Manxmouse instead of yielding and being swallowed shall take a firm stand in his defense and bravely and gallantly show that he means to fight for his life, then the Doom shall become inoperative, null and void and canceled. Manxmouse and Manx Cat shall live in peace forever after."

The crowd cheered loudly! Manxmouse and Manx Cat both agreed to follow these new terms. Years later, they were still neighbors. Manxmouse even started his own family with a local field mouse.

Manxmouse as an Anime

The story of Manxmouse was made into a Japanese animated TV special in 1979. This kind of animation is called anime. The studio Nippon Animation created it. Hiroshi Saito directed it, and Shun'ichi Yukimuro wrote the script. A famous voice actress named Masako Nozawa voiced Manxmouse.

The anime was called Tondemo Nezumi Daikatsuyaku: Manxmouse in Japan. This means "Manxmouse's Great Activity." It first aired on Fuji TV. Later, in 1989, it was dubbed into English. This means the Japanese voices were replaced with English ones. The English version was called The Adventures of Manxmouse. It was shown on Nickelodeon's weekend Special Delivery show. It was also released on video as The Legend of Manxmouse.

The anime version focused more on Manxmouse's friendships. It showed his bonds with the clutterbumph (named Dororon or Gholis), Captain Hawk, Wendy, and Burra Khan (Bula Khan). The ending was also different from the book. In the anime, Manxmouse's life is saved because the Manx Cat admits he had grown fond of Manxmouse. He didn't really want to eat him after all!

In 2001, this anime was used in Japan. It was part of a series called Anime Eikaiwa. This series helped people learn English using the PlayStation 2.

English Voice Cast

Other English Voice Actors: Steve Kramer, Robert Axelrod, Mikey Godzilla, Colin Philips, Drew Thomas, Jeffrey Platt, Gregory Snegoff, Ellyn Stern, Milton James