Patrick, a small elephant, is afraid of lots of things: '...like the dark, ghosties, bees, and the fluff you find under the sofa.' But Daddy isn't afraid of anything. Despite Patrick great efforts to scare him, nothing works - that is, until one day when a mouse appears at the door. Daddy is terrified. The mouse, one Cornelius J. Parker, claims to be from the Cheese Inspection Council, and he is here to inspect the family's cheese. Patrick, being a polite small elephant, leads the way to the kitchen while Daddy cowers behind the sofa. The mouse declares their cheese to be 'dangerous', and Patrick helps the mouse and his cohorts who have been called in to lift the heavy fridge. Not only do they take the fridge, but everything else in the house is considered fair game as well. Daddy is helpless, and it is only when mum appears on the scene that the thieving mice get their comeuppance. A lovely and very funny parable about fear and that everyone, even the strongest, is afraid of something - and the feminist angle at the end is super too. The illustrations are full of integrated text and speech bubbles, and lots of humour. While the little elephant knows he is afraid of lots of things, it is encouraging to him to see that his big, brave dad has one weakness.