The Mole Sisters and the Busy Bees

Patricia Morley is professor emerita of English and Canadian Studies at
Concordia University and an avid outdoor recreationist. She is the
author of several books, including The Mountain Is Moving: Japanese
Women’s Lives, Kurlek and Margaret Laurence: T

This series for very small children includes some of the most enchanting
books I have seen for many years. Both the text and the mixed-media
watercolor illustrations are perfect.

The Mole Sisters and the Busy Bees begins with a bit of wisdom:
“Sometimes it’s important to do nothing.” As they attempt to
follow their own maxim by resting under a tree, the sisters are
interrupted by a bee who leads them out of the forest into a flowery
meadow, a suitable place for playing games such as smelling wildflowers.
Deep breathing leads to deep sneezing, an act the bees find helpful.

In The Mole Sisters and the Wavy Wheat, the resourceful sisters decide
to vary their routine and go right instead of left, “Just for a
change!” They end their challenging day by sweeping their mole hole
and congratulating each other: “Now we’ve been everywhere.” Time
to sleep.

Roslyn Schwartz has written five previous books, including Rose and
Dorothy (1990), The Mole Sisters and the Piece of Moss (1999), and The
Mole Sisters and the Rainy Day (1999). She has also worked in film
animation, a background that seems to have fertilized the striking
“still” scenes of the Mole sisters’ gentle activities.

The Mole sisters are innocence and joy personified. Five stars in the
preschool picture-book category for both books. Highly recommended.