A Good Day by Kevin Henkes

A Good Day by Kevin Henkes is a little bit different than the other books I have read by him. Although this book is still good, it is much more simple than the others. I think this book is much better suited for beginning readers to read, as there is very few words and sentences in this book. When the book is opened to the pages, one side is filled with a picture, while the other side has the sentence on it. This makes the book much less overwhelming and conquerable for children learning to read. Although this book is simple, I think it still portrays a good message and is a fun book.

Owen by: Kevin Henkes

Another great book by Henkes! Once again this book is about a common thing that children go through, giving up their beloved "comfort" item. Owen is attached to his blanket named Fuzzy. He does everything with it and takes it everywhere he goes. Since Owen is starting school soon, his parents try different tactics to try to get ride of Fuzzy, but nothing works. Finally his mother comes up with a great idea, and she begins to work on the blanket. She turns his favorite blanket into small handkerchiefs that he can do a lot of the same things with, but not get ridiculed for.

Like Sheila Rae, Owen's problem represents many that kids go through. My step sister did not want to give up her special blanky and I remember how difficult it was to try to change her mind, and convince her that she would be fine without it. This book may be able to inspire some children to give up or allow alterations to their comfort item, which is something many parents would appreciate!

Sheila Rae, The Brave by Kevin Henkes

I loved this book. It is about a mouse, Sheila Rae, who was so brave. She did all of these things that showed how brave she was, while her sister was scared. Walking home from school one day, Sheila took a new route and her and her sister were lost. Sheila, usually so brave, became very scared and thought horrible things. At this time in the story her sister, Louise stepped up and became the brave one. She said she knew how to get them home and on the walk she did all of the brave things she usually sees her sister doing.

I think that this story is so fun, because a lot of kids can relate to the things that they are or are not scared of. When they read this they will be able to say,"I'm not scared of that either!" I love how great of a lead this book could be for talking about things that the children are scared of or things that they have overcome. The pictures in this book are also very well done. I love how some pages even have 2 or 3 pictures that help to show what the sentence is about. They are all done in very bright, fun colors. This book has a great message, but would be enjoyable just to read anytime.

The Birthday Room by: Kevin Henkes

The Birthday Room is a novel by Kevin Henkes. I was really surprised to learn that not only does he write wonderful children's books, but novels as well. This novel is about a boy that lost one of his fingers in a sawing accident when he was two while his Uncle was watching him. After the accident his mother never talked to nor heard from his uncle, until his 12th birthday. On that day he received a letter from his uncle requesting that they come visit him. During the visit they discover he is having a child and needs to be forgiven before he can move on.

I did enjoy reading this book, but the plot of the book is a little weird and boring at times. I did not feel like there was a big climax in the story. While reading this story I discovered that it was titled The Birthday Room, because he receives a room for his birthday, where he can create his artwork. The ending reveals, however, that he ends up giving the room to his uncle, aunt, and new born cousin as a birthday gift to them. I thought this re-gifting was necessary, because otherwise I had no idea how the room had to do anything with the rest of the story.

Julius The Baby of the World by: Kevin Henkes

This book reminded me of What the No-Good Baby is Good For. The Sister, Lilly, was very excited for her baby brother to be born. After he arrived, everything changed. She would say the opposite of what her parents told him and did not like him at all. When her cousin came over and agreed with her, Lilly got very defensive and told her all of the good things he can do. I think this story is very heartwarming, and so-like kids. Really, it is typical of all people. It is like the saying, "you don't know what you have, until it's gone." I think it is a cute book, and, as always, Henkes' mouse drawings are adorable.

Kitten's First Full Moon by: Kevin Henkes

I thought this book was really cute. It is about a kitty that sees the moon for the first time and thinks it is a bowl of milk. She does everything she can think of to get it, but she can't. She even climbs to the top of a tree to try to get it, while up there she discovers the reflection of the moon in the pond, and thinks it's another bowl of milk. She runs down and into the pond, but nothing. She ends up being a poor, sad, cold kitty. The book repeats, "Still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting." When she finally is worn out and tried everything, she goes home and finds a bowl of milk waiting for her there.

The main thing I like about the book is that there is a repetitive line throughout the story and at the end of the story, it changes because it is now the kitty's. I also really enjoy the pictures in this book. The entire book is done in shaded black and white. It really makes the moon stand out and look even bigger and brighter. I think that kids would love this book so much, because they would know that the moon really isn't a bowl of milk. They would laugh at all of the silly things the kitty is trying to do to get it, when they know it is to far away.

Reflection

Over the first half of the semester I have discovered so many great, new books! Without having specific guidelines set, at first I was pretty nervous to start my blog. Not having length minimums is difficult for me, but I have become accustomed to writing a blog and then coming back to it and writing some more. I think that it would be more helpful for me to get feedback on more specific ways to improve my blog, but I understand that would be very time consuming. Coming in to this class I thought that the freedom to choose our own books was going to be difficult, but researching good books and pulling random ones of off the shelf have proven to be quick and very useful.

I love the fact that not only do we get to read and reflect on the books we choose, but we get to read about all of the other books the other students read. Also, I loved having a reason to read so many children's books, because I had forgoten how great they are and how much variety they have.