Red Stripes VS Miles the Mutant Mouse
by Amy Rice and Kyson Rice
DETAILS: Publication Date: August 28, 2017 Format: Paperback Length: 60 pgs. Read Date: March 27, 2023
What’s Red Stripes VS Miles the Mutant Mouse About?
Red Stripes is your typical pet cat who spends his time playing with his human, Kyson. Unless disaster strikes—then he has to disappear (not unlike a certain Agent P) to help out, he’s secretly the superhero, Red Stripes the Super Wonder Cat!
In this particular adventure, a perfectly nice mouse was exposed to some toxic chemicals and mutated into a large and very hungry hulk of a mouse. Seeking food, he inadvertently creates a path of destruction, wreaking havoc on businesses, homes, and the city. Can Red Stripes stop him in time?
Let’s Talk about the Art for a Minute
As Amy Rice described it to me, while she did the art—Kyson directed it—changing colors and providing input on the overall look. A good team approach that is probably reflected in the text, too.
The designs and looks for Red Stripes and Mutant Mouse are great—I particularly like the mouse. Some of the objects—and (I’m sorry to say) all of the people are a little on the iffy side. But overall, it’s an attractive, vibrant, and playful book with a lot of energy to the art. It fits the story and the writing—and probably only older readers like me will nitpick the art (and really, I’m only nitpicking, not complaining).
So, what did I think about Red Stripes VS Miles the Mutant Mouse?
This is a cute little story, really. What I really admire about this is that the Rices worked on this together and accomplished something at Kyson’s pretty young age (I believe 5 at the time of writing).
I think younger readers will respond to the idea that a kid wrote this—it reads like the kind of thing a kid would make up, too—so it’ll probably hit the reader right in the sweet spot. Who knows, it might inspire a reader to try something like it themselves.
I don’t know that older readers will respond too well to the writing or the story—but that’s okay. We can get wrapped up in the story behind the book, that’s enough for us—we’re not the audience. And while I might not have loved this book on an aesthetic level, I did get a kick out of it and found myself smiling a good deal while reading it.
I admire Kyson’s mom for seeing this through—and the patience that both of them must’ve had to exercise along the way—and recommend a parent pick it up just to show a child what’s possible when they stick to a goal. The fact that they’ll be entertained by the art and story is a great bonus.
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