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Jeff Smith has always been in touch with his inner child, the one who loved comics from the get-go and got lost in their worlds of wonder and fantasy. That’s been pretty evident throughout his career. You’ve seen it, of course, in his definitive epic Bone (if you haven’t seen it, what are you waiting for? The time is now), and it shines through in his kidlike interpretation of Captain Marvel in Shazam! Even his new series, Rasl, which is for adults, contains that magic.

So it’s no surprise that Smith channels even more of that energy into his kid-friendly new book, LITTLE MOUSE GETS READY, from Toon Books. Toon’s philosophy is to create works that bridge the gap between picture books and graphic novels --- big, bold images told sequentially with word balloons and text guiding young eyes through the story.

As expected, the story is quite simple. As you may have guessed from the title, a little mouse gets ready (meaning he gets dressed), and he narrates all along the way. That’s about it (well, he digresses in his talking, but still…). And it’s quite good, actually! Smith has always been talented with crafting fun dialogue that both kids and adults can appreciate, and his art is a continuation of the early greats (tinged with a style all his own). So LITTLE MOUSE GETS READY is a classic-looking comic in the best possible sense.

Kids will love the book, and adults will love reading it to them. It’s funny, charming and just really well done.

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