Kid Book Help

August 12, 2010 7:54 AM

Another "help me remember this kid book" question.

Here's what I remember:

I would've read it in the early 80's.

It involved a family of mice, or maybe little people, that lived in the house of a normal-sized family. (I do *not* believe it was "The Littles".)

The son of the small family had a bicycle that he would use in the big family's cast-iron bathtub to zoom around. He ended up putting a big gouge in the inside of the tub, and the majority of the book was spent freaking out over how to fix it, because the father of the big family enjoyed soaking in the tub every night after work and would find the gouge immediately.

Eventually they ended up using toothpaste to cover it, but it was discovered, and I don't remember how the book ended.

Thanks!

posted by Lucinda to society & culture (5 answers total)

Pretty sure it's The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary.
posted by something something at 7:58 AM on August 12, 2010

The Champion of Merrimack County.
posted by Gator at 8:02 AM on August 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

Ah, yes, sorry. As soon as I wrote that I started second guessing myself.
posted by something something at 8:05 AM on August 12, 2010

The Borrowers?
posted by karminai at 10:01 AM on August 12, 2010

King of the Dollhouse has a family of dolls that live in a dollhouse within a real house. Toothpaste vaguely rings a bell, but I might be thinking of the peanut butter they feed the babies...
posted by supramarginal at 7:04 PM on August 12, 2010