Dakota Crumb: Tiny Treasure Hunter

In a clever take on the “night at the museum” theme, a little mouse with a genius for collecting leads picture book readers—and seek-and-find aficionados—on a thrilling nocturnal adventure.

Dakota Crumb: Tiny Treasure Hunter is both a rollicking story with a dash of danger and, in its final eye-popping spreads, a seek-and-find challenge. As the clock in the great museum tick-tocks past midnight, a little mouse with a sack and a treasure map scurries past the guards. Plucky and intrepid Dakota Crumb scours the museum for artifacts, including the famous Purple Jewel of Cairo (a gumdrop stashed in an exhibit). By day, the little mouse shares her carefully curated finds with fellow tiny creatures that flock to Miss Crumb’s tiny Mousehole Museum. A feast for sharp-eyed readers—who’ll delight in circling back after the story to pore over the illustrations in search of treasure—this gently suspenseful tale, splashed with soft, dusky hues, evokes a world of wonders after dark.

“Meet Dakota Crumb, treasure hunter extraordinaire. Never mind that she is a mouse; her small size is no hindrance to her bravery. . . . Readers will need sharp eyes to identify the actual treasures, but the effort is rewarded by admission through a tiny door under the big museum to the Mousehole Museum--curated by the amazing, clever Miss Crumb. Murphy's gray- and purple-hued nighttime cartoons perfectly track the action from Dakota's close-to-the-ground perspective, depicting her as an intelligent, confident, and independent female. . . . A delightful, entertaining romp with lots of surprises. --Kirkus Reviews”

Meet Dakota Crumb, treasure hunter extraordinaire. Never mind that she is a mouse; her small size is no hindrance to her bravery. . . . Readers will need sharp eyes to identify the actual treasures, but the effort is rewarded by admission through a tiny door under the big museum to the Mousehole Museum—curated by the amazing, clever Miss Crumb. Murphy’s gray- and purple-hued nighttime cartoons perfectly track the action from Dakota’s close-to-the-ground perspective, depicting her as an intelligent, confident, and independent female. . . . A delightful, entertaining romp with lots of surprises.
—Kirkus Reviews

In this Night at the Museum–leaning picture book, an intrepid gray mouse, dressed in a red turtleneck sweater and utility belt, uses her nocturnal prowl to scour a big-city museum for treasures. . . Michalak (Frank and Bean) drums up the lengthy expedition’s drama, and Murphy’s (Together We Grow) digitally colored pen and ink drawings are both adventure-story cinematic and wonderfully evocative; bathed in pale purples and blues, they capture the after-hours stillness and spooky chill of marbled interiors.
—Publishers Weekly

The writing draws listeners into the story with hints of daring escapades, and its tone sets the stage for adventure. The inviting artwork, drawn with pen and ink and digitally colored, enhances that atmosphere with shadowy scenes of the exhibit halls at night. Fun for reading aloud, ideally before visiting a museum.
—Booklist

Dakota Crumb: Tiny Treasure Hunter is successful on several levels: as an introduction to museums, as an adventure story and as a seek-and-find book. The treasures Dakota collects throughout the book provide a fun opportunity for kids to explore what can constitute a museum collection. Illustrator Kelly Murphy’s clear, colorful pen and ink images entice readers to look closely at paintings on the museum’s walls and tiny details in the exhibits. . . . Dakota Crumb is a delight that readers will return to again and again. In that way, it’s a bit like a favorite, fabulous museum.
—BookPage

When the mouse finds her fabulous treasure, kids (and adult Egyptologists) might need a bit of coaching to recognize it as a purple gumdrop. . . . But what is Dakota doing with all the stuff? The answer is a cute surprise, and even more fun is the fact that, once we know, we have a reason to read the book again.
—The Arkansas Democrat Gazette

Jamie Michalak is the author of the acclaimed Joe and Sparky series and Frank and Bean.

Kelly Murphy is the award-winning author-illustrator of The Boll Weevil Ball and illustrator of Creepy Monsters, Sleepy Monsters and Romping Monsters, Stomping Monsters, both by Jane Yolen, as well as many other picture books and chapter books for young readers.

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