Mice on Main: Children's book and an activity on Main Street in Greenville, SC

What exactly is "Mice on Main"? It's two different, yet very related things. Which "Mice on Main" came first?  The book or the Main Street activity? Both are definitely fun for children to experience and they can be experienced separately or together.

Which Came First? The Book or the Activity?

The "Mice on Main" activity first arrived on the scene of Main Street, Greenville, SC in the year 2000 when Jim Ryan worked to place nine bronze like mice sized statues in various places along Main Street. Jim had always loved Margaret Wise Brown's book, Good Night Moon and was inspired by the book to place the mice along Main Street for his senior project at Christ Church Episcopal School.

Jim asked sculptor Zan Wells to created the nine life sized mice, each with unique features. Children and adults have searched for the mice since the year 2000.

Linda Kelly got the idea to write a book about the "Mice on Main" when searching for the mice with her granddaughter. Linda contacted Jim and Zan and the three created characters and Zan illustrated Linda's new book, published in 2008. The book tells the story of how the mice came to rest in their places on Main Street in Greenville.

Find the "Mice on Main" - Free Activity

Families can search for the "Mice on Main" using free hints. Two different, but similar sets of hints provide clues to the locations of the nine mice. The City of Greenville offers one set of clues and Lindy Kelly's "Mice on Main" website offers a slightly different second set.

Read "Mice on Main" - Borrow or Buy

The Greenville County Library system owns two copies of Mice on Main and library card holders can check out the book to use with the activity.  The Mice on Main book as well as "Mice on Main" T-shirts can be purchased at locations listed on Linda Well's "Mice on Main" website.