Comments by Gordon Bok, internationally known folk musician and maritime folklorist:
"Everyone wants to run away with the circus. This is a lively little story in which the hero gets to go - and come back. The "circus" is a boat that's just been built in Essex, MA - a real boat, by the way, - and Daisy Nell has written a fine ballad (included as a CD) that's just as authentic and plausible as the boat. The language is strong and simple; it's not talking down to kids and it's not preaching couched in story (two things most of us kids detest) - it's just a grand little tale, very well illlustrated by one who obviously knows boats, and the whole thing is done with great enjoyment and warmth. This one sparkles."
Gordon Bok, Camden, ME May 2011

This book tells the story of a mouse in the shipbuilding town of Essex, Massachusetts, who sneaks onboard as a new schooner is launched in Harold Burnham's boatyard. Once the mouse leaves his home at the Essex Shipbuilding Museum, he realizes that there is a lot more to going to sea than he thought, once the boat sails away.
The text follows the song, recorded by Daisy Nell and Capt. Stan, and is available inside each book, with the children of the second grade at Essex Elementary School singing the chorus.