The mouse looked at the new clock. He thought it strange humming all the time. At one o’clock it flashed a light into the air. One o’clock it read and gave a loud BRUZZ-ZZ With fright, the mouse jumped into the air.
A familiar nursery rhyme becomes even more entertaining when unexpected surprises are added to the story. “The Twisted Hickory Dickory Dock” (Book 1) by Gina Sano is the first book in this playful series, giving the well-known tale of a mouse running up a clock a humorous new direction. Proudly published by Citi of Books, the book is now available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other major retail platforms.
Through lively rhymes, colorful illustrations, and funny exchanges between the mouse and the clock, the book introduces young readers to a fresh interpretation of a childhood favorite.
The story follows a little mouse whose repeated visits to an old clock lead to a series of amusing encounters. What begins as a simple nursery rhyme soon becomes a collection of unexpected mishaps as the clock strikes each hour. Its unusual sounds and movements repeatedly catch the mouse by surprise, while the mouse’s reactions become increasingly funny. As the hours pass, the interaction between the two characters develops into an entertaining adventure that makes this first book a delightful introduction to Gina Sano’s twisted take on a classic rhyme.
The relationship between the mouse and the clock gradually becomes more playful. When the clock strikes eight, the mouse is not nearby and comes running back, apologizing for being late. At nine, the mouse dances beside the clock, and the clock responds with laughter and an extra, softer ding. Their interactions become less about the mouse trying to escape and more about the amusing rhythm they have developed together. At ten, the mouse tries to creep past the clock and ends up pretending to be a hen, giving the clock another reason to laugh. By eleven, the mouse is counting the sounds and proudly points out that the number is four more than seven.
The adventure reaches its biggest surprise when the clock strikes twelve. The mouse has fallen asleep beside it but wakes up and pushes the small hand back to one. The clock responds with an extra loud ding, while its old-fashioned face now displays an impossible thirteen. An old man enters, notices what has happened, and wonders how the clock ended up showing one o’clock and thirteen. He decides to replace the old clock with a new digital one and carries the original away.
The change, however, is not quite the happy ending one might expect. The new digital clock continuously hums and produces a buzzing sound whenever it displays the time. The mouse finds the noise strange and is frightened by the light that flashes into the air. Remembering the old clock’s familiar ticks, tocks, boings, and dings, the mouse realizes that the new device is not nearly as comforting or entertaining.
“The Twisted Hickory Dickory Dock” (Book 1) by Gina Sano is a delightful opening to a playful series that gives a familiar childhood rhyme a funny and imaginative new direction. Its lively illustrations, entertaining language, and amusing mouse-and-clock encounters make it an enjoyable choice for shared reading and storytelling sessions. As the first installment, it introduces readers to the author’s creative twist on a classic while leaving them with a fun reminder that even the most familiar stories can surprise us when viewed from a different perspective.
Grab your copy of “The Twisted Hickory Dickory Dock” (Book 1) by Gina Sano through the buttons below: