''Babymouse'' is an American

graphic novel A graphic novel is a self-contained, book-length form of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and Anthology, anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comics sc ...

series created by American authors

Matthew Holm Matthew Holm is an American writer, web developer and artist. He is the illustrator of the children's storybook '' Babymouse'' series. Personal life Holm was raised in Audubon, Pennsylvania with his three brothers and one sister. His father ...

and Jennifer L. Holm. The series follows the titular character Babymouse as she navigates the hardships of elementary school. As of 2024, the main series consists of twenty entries, as well as five entries in the spinoff series ''Tales From The Locker'', which follows Babymouse as she enters middle school, and ''The BIG Adventures of BabyMouse'', another spinoff series featuring full-color print and a larger page size compared to the previous entries. Additionally, a picture book titled ''Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes'', which was also the first entry in the series to feature full-color print, is aimed at younger readers. ''Squish'' is a spinoff series featuring Babymouse's science fair project, an anthropomorphic amoeba. ''Babymouse'' has sold over three million copies, receiving praise from critics and readers alike for its humour and visual style.

Background

The first entry in the ''Babymouse'' series was finished in 2001, illustrated by Matthew Holm and written by his sister, Jennifer L. Holm. The book was not picked up by publishers for almost two years due to a lack of interest in the character. Eventually, the manuscript was sold to

Random House Random House is an imprint and publishing group of Penguin Random House. Founded in 1927 by businessmen Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer as an imprint of Modern Library, it quickly overtook Modern Library as the parent imprint. Over the foll ...

in 2003, and the book was published in 2005. The initial idea for ''Babymouse'' was conceived when Jennifer was having a "typical Babymouse kind of day". While sitting in her kitchen, the image of a grumpy mouse with big whiskers and hands on her hips appeared in Jennifer's mind, leading her to scribble it onto a napkin. When she saw her brother again, she showed him the drawing and they decided to create a book series together using the character. The reason they decided on a graphic novel format was because they believed comic books had shifted to an adult audience, and they wanted to create a comic book that would become popular with children that featured an easily relatable character. The series is aimed at girls because as a child, Jennifer felt that comic books were mostly aimed at a male audience and she couldn't relate to the characters. In 2010, a ''Babymouse'' animated series was reportedly in the works, but never released.

Books

# ''Queen of the World!'' (2005) # ''Our Hero'' (2005) # ''Beach Babe'' (2006) # ''Rock Star'' (2006) # ''Heartbreaker'' (2006) # ''Camp Babymouse'' (2007) # ''Skater Girl'' (2007) # ''Puppy Love'' (2007) # ''Monster Mash'' (2008) # ''Babymouse: The Musical'' (2009) # ''Dragonslayer'' (2009) # ''Babymouse Burns Rubber'' (2010) # ''Cupcake Tycoon'' (2010) # ''Mad Scientist'' (2011) # ''A Very Babymouse Christmas'' (2011) # ''Babymouse for President'' (2012) # ''Extreme Babymouse'' (2013) #''Happy Birthday, Babymouse'' (2014) #''Bad Babysitter'' (2015) #''Babymouse Goes for the Gold'' (2016)

Tales From The Locker

# ''Lights, Camera, Middle School!'' (2017) # ''Miss Communication'' (2018) # ''School-Tripped'' (2019) # ''Curtain Call'' (2020) # ''Whisker Wizard'' (2021)

The BIG Adventures of BabyMouse

* ''Once Upon a Messy Whisker'' (2022) * ''Besties!'' (2023)

Other books

* ''Babymouse Collection Books 1-13'' (2010) * ''Little Babymouse and the Christmas Cupcakes'' (2016)

Characters

*Babymouse is the main character and titular protagonist of the series. She has an active imagination and prefers to spend her time absorbed in books. Messy and disorganized, she is often late for class. *Narrator is the main narrator of the series. He sardonically comments on Babymouse's life, with her regularly interacting with him. *Locker is humourously depicted as sentient, often eating Babymouse's homework or teasing her. *Felicia Furrypaws is the main antagonist of the series. She is popular yet rude, egocentric, and manipulative. *Wilson Weasel is Babymouse's long-time best friend since kindergarten. *Squeak is Babymouse's pesky younger brother. *Georgie is a tall giraffe and friend of Babymouse. *Penny is a poodle and loves fashion. *Duckie is a kind duck who always has Babymouse's back.

Achievements

Awards and honors

References

{{Reflist Book series introduced in 2005 Random House books