"Marcel is a French mouse. He lives on a beautiful old boat in Paris. (His home is under the kitchen floor.) He likes books, restaurants and old films. He likes the opera, too.

One evening in June, Marcel finishes a detective story. Then he goes to have dinner with some friends. They live in the metro station at the Louvre.

After dinner, Marcel waits at the station. He sees two men standing next to him. The tall one is reading a magazine, "Look, " he says, "here she is: 'Opera star Miss Zaza dupont with her beautiful one million pound diamond ring - the White Star.' "