The Stone of Fire

December 1, 2012
Warp back in time for a prehistoric spinoff adventure with Geronimo Stilton's ancestor, Geronimo Stiltonoot, in Old Mouse City. Readers will find Geronimo Stiltonoot a familiar character, outfitted differently from descendant Stilton yet still running a newspaper and having wild adventures. In this introduction to prehistoric mouse life, someone has stolen the most powerful and important artifact housed by the Old Mouse City Mouseum: the Stone of Fire. It's up to Stiltonoot and his fellow sleuth and friend, Hercule Poirat, to uncover not only the theft, but a dangerous plot that jeopardizes all of Old Mouse City. As stand-ins for the rest of the Stilton cast, Stiltonoot has in common with Stilton a cousin named Trap, a sister named Thea and a nephew named Benjamin. The slapstick comedy and design, busy with type changes and color, will be familiar for Stilton readers. The world is fictionalized for comedic effect, featuring funny uses for dinosaurs and cheeky references to how far back in time they are, with only the occasional sidebar that presents facts. The story takes a bit long to get started, spending a lot of time reiterating the worldbuilding information laid out before the first chapter. But once it does start, it is an adventure Stilton readers will enjoy. Geronimo Stiltonoot has the right combination of familiarity and newness to satisfy Stilton fans. (Fiction. 6-10)

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March 15, 2013
Grades K-4 For readers who have worked their way through the multitude of books in the Geronimo Stilton franchise, here is something only slightly different. Meet Geronimo Stiltonoot, Stone Age Cavemouse and ancient ancestor of Geronimo Stilton. Interestingly enough, Mr. Stiltonoot's life is quite similar to that of his popular descendant's, except with mock-prehistoric trappings of the Flintstones variety. Stiltonoot's adventures are told in the tried-and-true format, i.e., ample colorful illustrations, diagrams, maps, words in the text frequently enlarged in a dizzying variety of fonts, and side blocks with bits of information and nonsense. Here Stiltonoot must overcome many perils to rescue the famous Stone of Fire stolen from the mouseum by the evil Tiger Khan. Literary references include Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes; however, the plot is more in the nature of Indiana Jones. Fans of the other Geronimo Stilton books will definitely embrace the over-the-top silliness in this new spin-off.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)