Review of Mike & Alex

[Catherine Sweet]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Mike & Alex" by Peter van Wermeskerken.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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Mike & Alex by Peter van Wermeskerken is a series of fiction books for children aged six to twelve. This writer has written several books on a range of subjects.

Mike is a giant rabbit, and Alexis is a large boar. They are both keen to help their fellow animals. The story starts in Normandy when some dolphins ask Mike and Alex for help. They explain that a whale called Wally is lying injured on the beach with a harpoon in his back. Two-legged creatures (humans) had attacked him. Mike and Alex do their best to help him.

When Wally is better, he offers to take Mike and Alex around the world. They travel in his mouth, enjoy seeing out of Wally’s left eye, and sit on seats with seatbelts. Wally hears of trouble for whales from whalers in the South Pole. He agrees to meet hundreds of whales there, and Mike and Alex promise to help them. Later in the story, some tuna want Mike and Alex to help with sea pollution. Two-legged creatures are responsible for pollution, which harms sea creatures.

This book is well-written and has a spirited and entertaining writing style. Mike and Alex are well-drawn and likeable characters. The storylines are original and imaginative. I liked it when Mike and Alex stayed in Wally’s mouth. It was amusing and inventive. The maps and pictures are a great addition and illustrate the story well.

The book has an educational aspect, which is delivered with a light hand and embodied naturally into the story. Readers can learn about different sea creatures and their diet and way of life. Many countries and oceans are featured in the book. Readers can also benefit from understanding how people and the effects of pollution threaten animals.

One of the characters, Chairman Bruno, can’t pronounce the letter O, and when he talks, this letter is replaced with asterisks. This makes it hard to read what he says, and I didn’t think it worked well. There are many characters in this story, which is sometimes confusing. I thought having fewer named characters would work better. I wonder if having a female as one of the main characters would make this book more appealing to girls.

Mike & Alex would interest young readers who like adventurous stories about animals. They would enjoy the characters Mike and Alex and find the story entertaining. I have taken one star off for the points made in the paragraph above. I award this book 4 out of 5 stars.

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Mike & Alex
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