Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh

　　田鼠Frisby太太面對著必須馬上搬家的緊急命運，否則她和四個孩子將喪命在農夫的挖土機下；然而，她的小兒子卻因肺結核病倒床上，無法起身。就在Frisby太太心焦如焚時，她意外地發現一群神秘的救星：玫瑰花叢下的”NIMH”老鼠。不可思議的是，這群老鼠不僅會用水用電，還會讀書寫字，過著和人類無異的文明生活！兩段交錯敘述的故事，交織成一部感人而發人深省的小說。藉由一群實驗室培養出的高智慧老鼠，作者反思著人類本身的文明歷程，也點出獨立自主的生命尊嚴。

Some extraordinary rats come to the aid of a mouse family in this Newbery Medal Award-winning classic by notable children’s author Robert C. O’Brien.

Mrs. Frisby, a widowed mouse with four small children, is faced with a terrible problem. She must move her family to their summer quarters immediately, or face almost certain death. But her youngest son, Timothy, lies ill with pneumonia and must not be moved. Fortunately, she encounters the rats of NIMH, an extraordinary breed of highly intelligent creatures, who come up with a brilliant solution to her dilemma. And Mrs. Frisby in turn renders them a great service.

Robert C. O’Brien

In real life, Robert C. O’Brien was Robert Leslie Conly. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, attended Williams College and graduated from the Universtiy of Rochester. While there he studied piano at Eastman School of Music, and at one time considered being a musician. Instead, he became an editor and writer for Newsweek magazine from 1941 to 1944, and for Pathfinder from 1946 to 1951. From 1951 until the time of his death in 1973 he was employed as a writer and editor by the National Geographic Magazine. He made his home in New York City before 1944 and in Washington, D.C. after that. He also had a home in Morgan County, West Virginia, after 1965, a place he loved and visited as often as he could. He was married and the father of one son and three daughters. His books include The Silver Crown, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, which won the Newbery Award, and A Report From Group 17. His last book, Z is for Zachariah was nearly completed at the time of his death; the last few chapters were written from notes by this wife and one of his daughters.