"14 Mice Digging Yams" Author: (Japanese) Iwamura and Longman/Illustrated Publisher: Relay Press

"14 Mice Digging Yams" is a world classic picture book that combines the beauty of nature with the love of family. It has been a bestseller in Japan for more than 20 years, with total sales exceeding 50 million copies. In this big family consisting of grandpa, grandma, dad, mom and ten children, the fourteen mice work together and have fun. They are of different ages, personalities and abilities. In order to survive, they work together, give full play to their strengths, take care of each other, work together to overcome various difficulties, and live a harmonious and happy family life. This attitude of not fearing the hardships of life, having the courage to do it yourself, and loving your family is the best parent-child reading book for modern urban children.

The author uses natural and detailed pictures to reproduce the mice's wisdom, bravery, alertness, teamwork, and positive outlook on life. The pictures in the book are colorful, delicate and beautiful, and there are many surprises and thoughts hidden on each page. Only by reading carefully can you discover them, and only by savoring them repeatedly can you get surprises.

Readers can follow the text prompts in the book to carefully distinguish the characters and situations in the book that seem similar but are actually different. In a beautiful artistic conception, they can unknowingly enter the world of little mice and discover the infinite freshness and wonder of nature from the perspective of mice. The little readers who own this series of picture books also learn to judge who is grandpa, grandma, dad, mom, and the eldest to the tenth child based on their appearance and clothing... In the end, these fourteen mice become the readers' close playmates, accompanying the readers to explore, travel, work, and play in nature...

The author Iwamura Kazuaki is familiar with nature and has a keen observation. The countless details and stories in the "Fourteen Mice" series are cleverly woven into the changing beauty of the four seasons. Readers can distinguish the ecology of plants and animals in different seasons from the pictures, and unconsciously learn to observe the gorgeous nature from afar and up close, and experience the beauty of time and the rhythm of change.

Kazuaki Iwamura was born in Tokyo in 1939. After graduating from Tokyo University of the Arts, he worked as an art designer and TV cartoon program. Then, he devoted himself to the creation of picture books. The most meaningful thing is that he was tired of the urban life in Tokyo, so he resolutely led his family to the suburbs, chose the land, built the house, and found water sources by himself, overcame all kinds of life difficulties, and lived a "return to nature" life. From this experience, we can fully understand the inspiration of Kazuaki Iwamura's creation of "Fourteen Mice".