Summary

Stuart Little is told by a third-person omniscient narrator in the past tense. The narrator opens the novel by saying, “When Mrs. Frederick C. Little’s second son arrived… he was not much bigger than a mouse” (1). It then becomes clear that this son, Stuart, is a mouse. A doctor is summoned, who tells the Littles that Stuart is perfectly healthy.

The narrator then describes Stuart’s life with the Littles. One time, Stuart helps his mother by going into a drain to find her lost ring. Afterwards, “everybody in the family thought [Stuart] had been awfully good about the whole thing” (6). Another time, Stuart helps his brother George play ping-pong by running into dark corners for the ball; another time, Stuart helps George play the piano by unsticking the keys.

The narrator goes into detail about Stuart’s washing up routine, describing...