Ned Mouse, the hero of this beginner reader chapter book, is a political prisoner. Having written a protest message in a pile of cooked spinach (“The government is unfair to mice,” traced with one finger), he is jailed for life. Over the years, several escape plans fail, each ending with his reincarceration by a dim-witted jailer. He is starting to feel completely diminished when the arrival of a letter from a friend gives him fresh hope, and he hatches a new plan. Little by little, he removes parts of himself, mails the parts out of the prison, and is gradually made whole again by his friend at a seaside resort. The happy conclusion has some of the flavour of The Shawshank Redemption, except that here the recipe for justice involves a larger measure of forgiveness.

Tim Wynne-Jones, the Ontario-based author of more than 20 books for kids, has received widespread recognition for his work, including two Governor General’s Awards in the 1990s. What stands out most about his writing is the subtlety with which he embeds complex ideas in an ostensibly light, entertaining narrative. Within this jaunty tale about a resourceful mouse is a network of larger ideas about prison reform, freedom of speech, human dignity, and forgiveness. The book is dedicated to Herman Bianchi, the Dutch jurist, poet, and historian who’s one of the grandfathers of restorative justice. There’s little development of these concepts in the brief narrative, but it’s enough just to let them rise to the surface now and again. At the very least, beginner readers will find a well-written story with its humorous elements picked up in Dusan Petricic’s friendly, cartoon-like illustrations.