The tiny English speaking Duchy of Grand Fenwick located in the Alps, may not seem very important. Just three miles wide and five long yet to the proud inhabitants all 6,000 of them, it's still paradise on Earth. Founded in 1370 by an English knight Roger Fenwick (Sir Roger if you valued your life in his presence). Trouble begins when their only export Pinot wine is threatened by a copycat from California ( I understand a very inferior product though I'm a loyal Californian). Grand Duchess Glori...

"There's only one method of getting money from another nation that is recognized by tradition as honorable," Tully said, solemnly."What is it?" asked the Duchess . . ."War," he said."War!" echoed Gloriana, in astonishment."War," repeated Tully. "We could declare war on the United States."The tiny Duchy of Grand Fenwick is hurting for money. Their plan is to start a war with the U.S., lose, and then receive some subsidy from the American government.So, here they come to sort-of-conquer us, twenty...

A silly look at what would happen if the smallest country in the world took on the U.S. They want the U.S. to beat them so we could poor money into their economy and help them beef up their country, along the lines of the Marshall Plan.

Very funny broad humor and most of the satire still bitesI first read this novel when I was in high school - The Cold War, the space race, the Cuban missile crisis. The satire was timely. The humor is timeless. The satire now seems almost innocent and even a little naive in light of all that has happened in the world since this book's original publication in 1955. In those days, the idea that the little countries of the world, given the power, could end or at least mitigate the threat of nuclear...

Hysterically funnyThe miniscule Duchery of Grand Fenwick is suffering from a population explosion (4000 to 6000 people), financial woes (Their Pinot is being copied and undersold by a California Winery), and is no longer self sufficient after 600 years of existence. What to do? Declaring war on America is the only honorable decision.Thus begins one of the funniest book series of the Cold War period. Made into a movie with Peter Sellers which is definitely worth viewing, the book still contains a...

I quite liked it.I'm not an expert on satire, and to be honest, it generally goes over my head. I did get a few chuckles out of it, though--it's not exactly Wodehouse, but it was still delightfully ridiculous at some points, appealing to my sense of humor. I also appreciated the book's morality. It aligned very much with my own, naïve as it may seem. I wish this would have happened in real life, in fact.Not for everyone, as with anything, but a good, quick, worthy read.

I should give it 2 and a half stars. I didn't find it all that funny but it was well written. I'm just a very hard sell for humor.

This book is hilarious. Unfortunately it's also out of print, and so difficult to track down. Luckily I managed to find a copy in a local used book store, and I read it very quickly.I first heard of the movie version of this book many years ago when I was still in high school, and a friend told me about this movie where a small nation invades America and wins, even though they only had spears and things, because nobody took them seriously. I thought it sounded funny, but she didn't know the name...

Hurray! There's more of these! I admit to myself I was skeptical, hopeful but skeptical. How funny or topical or still relevant today could 1955 Cold War satire be? And it turns out very to all three and I think only shows its age in a few spots. It's a nice merge of fantasy and reality--the possibility I think of a tiny country comprised of English longbowmen mercenaries who claimed that territory in the 14th century because no one else wanted it, where they still use long bows and wear heraldi...

The Mouse that Roared by Leonard Wibberley is a satirical book that is set during the Cold War or during the time of massive nuclear arms build up. The story begins in the small nation of the Grand Duchy of Fenwick which has detached itself from the world for nearly six centuries. The country is in need of money and they come up with a plan to get the money by going to war with the United States. Even though they plan to lose the Grand Duchy of Fenwick becomes the most powerful country in the wo...

The Mouse that Roared by Leonard Wibberley is a satirical novel about the Cold War. The plot centers on the fictional country of Grand Fenwick and the exploits of its inhabitants. In the story, Grand Fenwick is the world’s smallest country. Yet, through the actions of a few devoted citizens it wins a war against the United States, captures the world’s most powerful weapon, and eventually brings an end to the Cold War. This book has several important attributes that make it enjoyable. First, is

Just as I suspected. Peter Sellers was not in this book. Stick to the movie.

http://yearningtoread.blogspot.com/Grand Fenwick is a little known country near France, a small duchy that has flourished for centuries because of their popular wine company. Recently, however, the wine business has failed to bring in enough money to live on.  There are those who wish to dilute the wine, and others who are against this notion. Both parties continue to argue over the outcome until a grand scheme is devised: small, itty bitty Grand Fenwick will declare war on the U.S. - attack, l...

Maybe it's a mistake to reread books I loved as a kid. Recently, I've done that with several—and found myself disappointed. Just now I've had a similar (if less extreme) experience with a 1955 bestseller about nuclear madness, The Mouse That Roared, by the Irish-American writer Leonard Wibberley. The book was the first in a series of five comic novels, but it made a bigger splash four years later when Peter Sellers starred in a popular film adaptation of the same name. And that may be the proble...

Film trailer The story reminds me of the independence of a suburb of London, also a film (black and white) - any clues to the title anyone?LATER - when walking my long-nosed, hairy thing in the woods, it came to me Passport to PimlicoBlurb - Mark McDonnell and Steven McNicoll's dramatisation of Leonard Wibberley's famous comic novel. It is 1956, and the Cold War is at its chilliest. But one European country is blissfully detached from the struggles of the Super Powers. The Duchy of Grand Fenwick...

A tiny European principality, no bigger than some moderate farms, feels slighted by the marketing strategy of an American vinter, invades New York and defeats the Unites States at the height of the Cold War.The story is so absurd that it can't be anything but a brilliant political satire. Written in 1955 it uses the general madness of nuclear deterrent, global fiscal policies and the political uncertainties and moral certainties which haunted the world at that time to deliver a scathing as well

I had read this classic Cold War satire when I was a teenager while the Cold War was still ongoing. At the time it provided light relief to what were real fears of nuclear war. So it was fun to revisit when it was chosen as the February selection for our reading group. We all enjoyed it and discussed the issues the story highlighted and the historical background. While written sixty years ago it still worked well and provided plenty of comedy though in the time since the United States had certai...

this is a really fun book, really good I recommend it. It was written as a serial and you can tell when you read it because it feels like dispatches in a newspaper. But it is also really well thought out, there aren't the type of plot holes you would expect in a book of this kind. On the other hand it does read as dated which is weird since in theory it is not at all dated. But it is as good as the play.

Having only dimly remembered seeing the movie long long ago, and having never read anything by Wibberley other than Encounter near Venus, a strange H.G. Wells ripoff-I-mean-tribute, for children (now an out-of-print rarity), which haunted me after I read it in grade school, I was surprised at how genuinely witty it is. I may pick up some of the other "Mouse" novels if I come across them.

An endearing little story about how an obscure European duchy upsets the Cold-War-Era balance of power, holds the world hostage and generally sets things to rights by taking possession of a shoebox. Not as hysterically funny as I was led to expect, but a good read.

Ok, this is the 2nd or 3rd or fifteenth or so time I've read this book. While a little dated (cold war times and written in 1955) its still a fun, light and breezy book.

A great fairy tale about nuclear disarmament and politics in general. Found this 1956 hardback edition in great shape at Goodwill. Huzzah! It's a keeper.

An oldie that always pleases!

The tiny little Duchy of Grand Fenwick declares war on the US and wins. Sweet and funny.

Technically this is a reread but it's been so long...I read this years ago, when in hs. It was in the library and the cover caught my eye. I'd mostly forgotten about it though until several years ago while poking around a UBS, I stumbled across a sequel. I debated about it for months before finally getting it (amazingly enough, it was still there), but it was another year or three before I found *this* one. I have yet to see the other two books in the series.So what's it about? Oh, a tiny nation...

Objective SummaryThe Duchy of Grand Fenwick achieved its independence circa 1402 and remained free ever since. Five miles long by three miles wide, it is nestled near France and Switzerland in the Alps. Its only export is a fine wine, known as Pinot Grand Fenwick. With a population of about 5,000 people, Grand Fenwick’s technological progress and economy stagnated over the centuries. To feed its people, a debate emerged as to whether the Grand Fenwickians should dilute their wine with 10% water....

I found a copy of this in the local library, and having seen the Peter Sellers movie, I had to read it.This was, I understand, originally serialized in a magazine, and it has that feel to it. It's not a deep book, but has many warm and funny moments, and written at a quick pace with a fantastic premise that, seen in 1954 (when it was written), is so silly that it is believable. I liked the depiction of Grand Fenwick, which you didn't see in the film. It was a very likable and believable country,...

The Mouse that Roared is a hilarious read about the tiny country of Grand Fenwick, that decides to wage war against the United States in hopes of losing and getting money. Their plan does not quite go as expected. The plot started a little slow, especially because the author decided to present an extensive history of Grand Fenwick. After it got started, it was full steam ahead right until the very last page. The Mouse that Roared was written during the Cold War, and pokes fun at the conflict in

When I was a kid, my dad had mentioned a book called The Mouse That Roared and for some reason, his description of the premise – a tiny nation captures a nuclear bomb that makes it the most powerful country on Earth – stuck with me. He must have mentioned this thirty years ago, but a few weeks ago I found myself Googling for it and finding it long out of print. I looked on Amazon and people wanted $130 for it. Sometimes, though, it pays to go local. I found it at The Strand for $9. Well, definit...

This was a fun little diversion from my usual fare. It's satirical but in a whimsical, sweet way, not nasty or depressing. Also because it was written so long ago I could view the story as "that's what people had on their minds during the 1950s" rather than feeling emotionally involved the way I might with a book dealing with current political ideology.