Clementine is different from other mice: she can calculate the speed of light and she dreams in Latin. The scientists say shes a genius and put her through test after test. Clementine is proud of being a good lab mouse, but shes lonely. Her only snatches of friendship occur during her late-night visits with a chimpanzee named Rosie. When a compassionate lab technician frees Clementine, the mouse discovers an outside world full of wonders: Brussels sprouts, games of speed chess, television fame, and a chance for a real home. But for Clementine, its not enough to be free when she knows that Rosie and the other mice are not. This tender, lively adventure story, narrated in letters from a mouse to a chimpanzee, shows us that goodness is something we have to define for ourselvesand that courage and wisdom arent proportionate to size.