THE BIG MOVE

An all-too-close encounter with the new president’s children and their “c-a-t” nearly spells disaster for two White House mice in this history-laced series opener.

Inauguration Day hoopla would seem to provide a perfect opportunity for furry sibs Ava and Dean Squeakerton to root through the newest first family’s unpacked moving boxes in hopes of adding a souvenir Lego to the hoard of presidential memorabilia gathered by the teeming Squeakerton clan over 60 (mouse) generations. But when their mom’s swearing-in doesn’t keep first kids Banks and Macey away long enough for Ava and Dean to make their escape—and worse, the presidential “c-a-t” (mice never say the fearful word) makes an appearance—the resultant scurry sets off a potentially deadly Code Brown. Perhaps noticing the clothes with which Ford dresses his mice in the frequent floor-level black-and-white scenes, Banks and Macey glibly deflect the Secret Service so that the mice can slip away with their lives and also with two prizes: a Lego, yes, but also a coin battery that has long been sought to power a minicamera once owned by Sasha Obama. Leavitt adds plenty of historical flavor with references to White House locations and past residents and closes with photos and more facts plus a presidential portrait gallery. Volume 2, Oval Office Escape, publishes simultaneously.

A frisky adventure not at all weighed down by the timely doses of local history folded in.