Mouse Guard, Volume 2: Winter 1152 »

In the Winter of 1152, the Mouse Guard face a food and supply shortage threatening the lives of many mouse through a cold and icy season. Some of the Guard's finest - Saxon, Kenzie, Lieam, and Sadie, led by Celanawe, the legendary Black Axe - traverse the snow-blanketed territories acting as diplomats to improve relations between the mouse cities and the Guard, and find themselves on a race against time to deliver crucial medicines. This is a winter not every Guard may survive...

Collects the second Mouse Guard series by Russ Manning Award-winner David Petersen, with an epilogue and bonus content.

School Library Journal

Gr 5 Up–Picking up where Fall 1152 (Archaia, 2007) left off, Winter 1152 follows the darkening adventures of the brave troops of the Mouse Guard as they battle the elements, predators, and even other mice in order to secure their way of life. The high-quality artwork found in the first volume carries over into this one. The narrative, familiar to anyone with even a passing knowledge of Tolkien, is fast paced and compelling, if overly reliant on exposition. Due to the rich history and detailed setting of the Mouse Guard world, readers will want to pick up the first volume before tackling this one. Comparisons to Brian Jacques’s “Redwall” (Philomel) are unavoidable and deserved, but Petersen’s artwork and concise storytelling set Mouse Guard apart. Combining a tale of action, romance, comedy, and tragedy with the graphic-novel format results in a top-notch work with wide appeal.–Douglas P. Davey, Halton Hills Public Library, Ontario, Canada