Lulu the Broadway Mouse

August 1, 2018
Lulu's dreams are big for a little mouse: starring on Broadway.Lulu lives in the very best house, the Schubert Theatre, on West 44th Street. Her passion is to perform on stage. In a first-person narrative, the little mouse interacts with and assists the cast and crew backstage. Her ability to speak English and her full acceptance despite her rodent nature are givens. The drama of the story revolves around a self-centered child performer, who rarely misses a performance and whom Lulu does not like because she is full of "Sugarcoated meanness," and the very friendly understudy who decides to chuck it all and go home to New Jersey. Can the new understudy overcome her stage fright? Spoiler alert: Dreams can come true for performers of all sizes. Lulu writes with a very chatty, insider's point of view (the author made her debut on Broadway in Gypsy with Bernadette Peters and author Tim Federle) and tosses out references to Broadway luminaries such as Stephen Sondheim and Elaine Stritch along with shows such as Fiddler on the Roof, Oliver!, and Wicked. Cast and crew default to white, with one Italian-American and one guy who "dates men" but flirts with women singled out. Gavigan concludes her tale with a list of recommendations about New York City, proper theater behavior, and how to live your own theatrical dream.Preteens who are star-struck for Broadway will enjoy the drama. (Fantasy. 9-12)

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Actress--and now children's author--Jenna Gavigan brings youthful energy to her animal and human characters, especially Lucy Louise, the chatty, precocious first-person protagonist. Lulu is a mouse who lives at the Shubert Theatre in New York City and dreams of starring on Broadway. It seems unlikely, but humans accept her without question. She spends as much time as possible assisting the crew and performers backstage, and when a kind, new understudy named Jayne arrives, she and Lulu become fast friends. Lulu helps Jayne overcome her stage fright; handle difficulties with the mean girl child actor, Amanda; and achieve Broadway debuts for them both. Kids with their own Broadway dreams will love Lulu's enthusiasm and insider knowledge of the theater world. S.C. � AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine

October 15, 2018
Grades 3-6 Lulu has always dreamed of performing on Broadway. She even lives in a Broadway theater. The problem is that Lulu is a mouse, and she's sure her dream is impossible?most humans dislike mice. Luckily, the theater folk, at least, accept Lulu and her mouse family, and her mom even sews for the play's costumer. Everyone carries Lulu around or sets her at eye level to see or talk with her more easily (of course Lulu talks). The only human Lulu doesn't like is Amanda, the show's mean and self-centered child star. Amanda is loath to give up the spotlight and rarely misses a performance. When Amanda's understudy leaves the show, she's replaced by Jayne, a talented, "human-sized version of Lulu." When Amanda unexpectedly gets sick, Jayne gets her chance to go on but freezes. Can Lulu save the day? Readers won't look at a mouse the same way again after reading this sweet, heartfelt, charming debut that's filled with theater trivia and proves that anything is possible if you wish hard enough.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)