Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

First-time author Butler circumvents the fact that there are no penguins in the Arctic by delivering one there via hot-air balloon. Freya has an adventurer's heart, a passion stoked by her beloved book, Hints to Lady Travelers; but her careful preparations for stowing away in the hot-air-balloon basket of a human expedition to the North Pole are thrown off when another passenger appears in her hiding place a street-smart mouse named Zoose. Their odd-couple dynamic is instantly entertaining and deepens into friendship as they face life-threatening challenges in a hostile, frozen landscape. Thermes' frequent whimsical illustrations help soften some of the story's more harrowing moments. A word of caution, however (spoiler alert!): this is an ill-fated expedition, and one gutsy scene shows the last remaining human seated with a shotgun in his lap, which Zoose euphemistically describes as meeting death halfway. Young readers will likely have questions about this, and sensitive children will certainly be troubled. Nevertheless, this is a confident and sophisticated debut that will appeal to adventure-loving kids undeterred by nature's harsher side.--Julia Smith Copyright 2018 Booklist

Publishers Weekly
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An etiquette-obsessed penguin and a vagabond mouse accompany Swedish air balloonist S.A. AndrAce on his ill-fated journey to the North Pole. Ready for an adventure after being stranded alone for over a year, Swedish penguin Freya stows away with a group that plans to travel to the North Pole via hot air balloon. But she is not alone-mouse Zoose, a scrappy Londoner, has been "living in this basket ever since they built it." Freya finds the mouse "vulgar," but as the balloon loses altitude and the group switches to sledges, the two slowly bond. Freya saves Zoose after they end up in a meltwater pool, and Zoose returns the favor after a polar bear mauls Freya. The animals continue their journey, telling stories about their past, tagging after the humans, and meeting a "blindingly beautiful" snow fox, who enraptures the animals but misrepresents herself. As AndrAce and his team face grave danger and eventually die, Freya and Zoose realize that their future lies together. History and animal friendship combine to form a touching, if strange, travel narrative. Ages 8-12. Agent: Steven Chudney, the Chudney Agency. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

What happens when a fashionable penguin and an irreverent mouse each coincidentally stow away on a hot air balloon headed for the Arctic?At first it's no picnic for either of them. Freya, the penguin, named for the goddess Freya, seeks to escape her sad reversal of family fortune by following adventurous advice from her dog-eared copy of Hints to Lady Travelers at Home and Abroad. Zoose, a diminutive mouse named after the venerable god Zeus, grew up cursed by his uncle and childhood priest and banished by his community. He's determined to become the first of his species to reach the North Pole. This modern-day odd couple soon learns that traveling involves risk and one must rise to the occasion. Ultimately they determine that it is "better to drift together than drift apart." By the end of their voyage, they each discover their talents while overcoming their fears, further proving that "travel is the true touchstone of character." Zoose learns to accept death while Freya redefines the meaning of "home." Butler has a light, humorous, and fluent touch, which particularly shines when her characters share their own stories. This endearing travel-buddy tale is further brightened by Thermes' charming illustrations.For fans of animal and adventure stories alike. (Fantasy. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

School Library Journal
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Gr 3–7—When Freya, a very proper but adventurous rockhopper penguin, hitches a ride on Captain Saloman August Andrée's North Pole–bound hot air balloon, she is unaware that there is another stowaway on board. She and Zoose, a rough-and-tumble London-born mouse, share all of the adventure of the ill-fated 1897 Andrée expedition to the North Pole, as well as an encounter with a charming arctic fox and her narwhal friend that tests their friendship. Butler puts readers right in the middle of the action as she describes the treacherous voyage, unrelenting weather, and brutal landscape, painting a clear picture even without the abundant illustrations of the print edition. Jayne Entwistle performs Freya's story in a perfectly proper voice, while Zoose's words convey his Cockney background and his unbound energy. Although Freya and Zoose can read, wear clothing, and can converse with other animals, they still exhibit typical animal traits as they eat, nest and, despite Zoose's initial fears, learn to accept death as a part of life's cycle. VERDICT A charming animal tale of friendship, loyalty, and personal growth; youngest readers may find the human deaths disturbing.—MaryAnn Karre, Binghamton, NY

School Library Journal
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Gr 3-5-A first-rate animal fantasy with themes of friendship and resilience. Freya the rock hopper penguin and Zoose the mouse become reluctant shipmates when they both stowed away on Captain Salomon August Andrée's real-life 1890's balloon expedition to the North Pole. The bird's wealthy Scandinavian upbringing has made her into a judgmental snob complete with a large inheritance, steamer trunks, and a known-by-heart copy of Mrs. L.C. Davidson's 1899 Hints to Lady Travellers at Home and Abroad (yes, dear reader, that is an actual book). The London-born rodent, by contrast, has skulked and thieved his way through Europe and has the tastes and diction to show for it. Both consider themselves ready to abandon the other as soon as possible, until the dangers of the ill-fated expedition put their lives in each other's hands. Told from Freya's third-person perspective in a droll mock-Victorian style clearly influenced by Mrs. Davidson's guide, this adventure story has it all: hardship, humor, and a narrative arc that shows the companions overcoming their past family traumas and mutual dislike to save themselves and each other. Thermes's winsome black-and-white illustrations capture the quirky setting, where proper penguins wear cravats and pearls to eat fish by chandelier light. This skillfully told first novel will make a popular read-aloud; it's a worthy successor to Chris Kurtz's Adventures of a South Pole Pig and Kate DiCamillo's The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. VERDICT A first purchase for all public and elementary school libraries.-Beth Wright Redford, formerly of -Richmond Elementary School Library, VT © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.