The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes

The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes
Greenwillow Books

Rating: 3.5 stars

Billy Miller finds himself at the end of summer vacation, about to start second grade when he suddenly realizes that he might not be smart enough for second grade. The worrying creeps into his mind and he just can't shake it.

He starts second grade anyway--as if he has a choice!--and throughout the book he has small, second-grade-sized challenges that he worries about then overcomes, and Billy realizes that everything turns out okay in the end, and sometimes it turns out even better than okay.

Billy finishes the book at the very end of second grade just a little more confident and a little more capable than when he started.

I solidly liked this book, but Lorelei solidly loves it. She's read it a few times and recommended it to several of her friends. She read it the summer before her second grade, which I think is the perfect time to read The Year of Billy Miller, especially if that second grader has some (normal!) frets about school. There's nothing objectionable in this book and Billy has a yesteryear quality about him--he's a rule-following kid, a sweet big brother without a bit of sarcasm or eye-roll in his body. 

My favorite aspect of the book is the fact that there is no huge problem Billy needs to overcome. His parents don't fight or go through a divorce, no family member or friend dies, he doesn't lose his favorite pet. Billy's challenges seem bite-sized to us grown-ups but seem giant-sized to a kid barely four feet tall. And I like that a lot, because those little daily problems (such as your sister ruining a school project or reciting a poem in front of the whole school) are what life is chock full of for kids. 

What I don't love about this book: I think his parents help him too much. It's his super-hip artist dad that helps him redesign his school project after his sister douses it in glitter. And it's his always-patient mother who rescues him at the climax of the story, smack dab in the biggest small problem of his whole life. I love books where the kids have the total spotlight and the parents are in the background--I love watching kids solve their own problems, even if they create some problems of their own, too. 

But despite my misgivings, I enjoyed watching Billy grow over the course of the year, and this is a great one to read this summer with your soon-to-be second grader, or a book to let that kiddo read by him/herself.

Penny and Her Marble by Kevin Henkes

Penny and Her Marble by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 5 stars

On Wednesday, Lorelei told us that Kevin Henkes was her class's author of the month.  We've been fans of his for years--he is an author to remember on the days when you have exactly 3.4 minutes in the library.  He's written enough books to fill your library bag.  You'll be in and out of the library before your toddler throws his tantrum.  Promise.  (I know, I know, parents aren't supposed to throw out empty promises like that one, but…)

Penny and Her Marble is one of his newest books.  It is one of three sweet little beginner reader chapter books (the other two: Penny and Her Song and Penny and Her Doll) about a young mouse learning important moral lessons.  They are wonderful gems of books!

In Penny and Her Marble, Penny strolls along with her doll Rose and finds a beautiful, shiny, new, blue marble near Mrs. Goodwin's house.  She picks it up and appreciates its beauty in her little hand, telling her doll all about it.  She walks home with it, feeling like she's found buried treasure.

But then her conscience--that wonderful thing that is still forming in our kids' little brains--kicks in.  She starts to wonder if she did the right thing.  She wonders if she stole something valuable from Mrs. Goodwin, rather than innocently found a lost item.  Did Mrs. Goodwin miss it?  She feels guilty and concerned and worried, though Henkes never uses grown-up words such as guilty or concerned or worried (or stealing or thief or innocent).  Instead, he shows us her face and how her sleep and eating is interrupted because of her thoughts on what was right and what was wrong.

"Isn't it pretty, Rose?"

Penny decides to go and return the marble the next morning.  She strolls back over with Rose and plops it back in the grass where she found it.  But Mrs. Goodwin walks out and calls after her.  Penny's heart pounds.  Her cheeks are hot. She cannot speak.  Mrs. Goodwin says, "I found the marble yesterday.  It was in the back of m kitchen drawer.  I thought someone would love it.  That is why I put it in on the grass by the sidewalk.  I hoped someone would walk by and see it."

"I did see it, but I put it back," says Penny.  (She did the right thing!)  But Mrs. Goodwin puts it in her hand--she gives Penny permission to take the marble.  Penny is overjoyed!  Penny is relieved, and I tell you, Lorelei, Ben and Kiefer and I were all relieved, too.  (When you feel for a character, that's a mark of a good book for sure).  And she thinks it is smoother and shinier and bluer and more beautiful than ever (because her conscience is burden-free).

I love the discussion we had over dinner after this book.  Did she do the right thing?  What would we have done?  How did she feel in the beginning, and then at the end?  Kids realize sooner or later the hard reality: there are no totally right answers.  Just mostly right, and mostly wrong.  They've got to have the skills to think clearly and weigh options and choose wisely.  Books like this one give us parents the opportunity to have good discussions in a safe environment about what is right and what is wrong.  And how we love them even when they make a not-so-awesome choice...and how we cross our fingers and hope they don't make the same mistake over and over again.  "On to new mistakes!" we say in our house.


P.S.  The kids and I watched a short video about Kevin Henkes on his website (click HERE).  It was informative and fun to see him show us all the books we've read by him, but the kids were most impressed with how well he drew with just a few quick strokes of his paint brush.  They were really impressed.  Also on the website is his mailing address.  Guess who is getting three pieces of fan mail sometime soon?

A Good Day by Kevin Henkes

A Good Day by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 5 stars

Another simple book with a simple message: bad days can turn into good ones.  One by one Henkes introduces an animal that is having a not-so-hot day.  A dog gets tangled up in his leash; a squirrel dropped a nut.  "But then..." writes Henkes "The little white dog gets himself untangled and runs in circles through the dandelions."  And of the squirrel: "He found the biggest nut ever!"

What a great thing to teach our kids: don't worry, this bad-ness will pass, and good-ness will be sure to follow (hopefully sooner rather than later!).

Little yellow bird lost his favorite tail feather.
Little yellow bird forgot about his tail feather, and flew higher than he ever had before.

I think, though, that in real life there is often some in-between action, some stuff that happens after the bad and before the good.  It's called pulling yourself up and turning the day around all by yourself.  Wouldn't it be grand to be able to always count on someone else to do that job...a spouse, a friend, a child, even my trusty ol' mutt?  But I think we should take charge of our own happiness, and know how to cheer up ourselves.

I needed some cheering up mid-day today, and though I take full credit for making myself happy, I had some help in the form of a fairly adorable little toddler who thinks I am the funniest person in the whole world.  While the big kids were totally engrossed in whoknowswhat after lunch, I turned up Louis Prima on my iPod and he and I danced like crazy to some old jazz/swing music that never fails to lighten my mood.  My hair was up in a wild ponytail at the top of my head, spilling all over my face as we shimmied and scooted around.  He giggled, and I smiled, dancing like goofballs.  Thankfully, only the trees could see in from the windows, and I think they approved.

So, yes, like this sweet little book, my day is ending well.

Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes

Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 4.5 stars

We love this book.  I mean, we LOVE this book.  Lorelei knows almost every word by heart, and the little illustrations--more like intricate sketches or doodles, really--captivate her.  She can stare at a page of this book for a few minutes, just studying it.

Chrysanthemum is a little white mouse who, in her parents eyes, "is absolutely perfect," so she must have an absolutely perfect name, too--thus this super long flower's name that I now know how to spell.  (Even before spellcheck, for all you sassy folk out there.)  She loves her name, too.  Until she starts school.  On the first day of school she realizes everyone has monosyllabic names like Gus or Sam or Max; hers "scarcely fits on her nametag."  (Lorelei will often tell a person that her name is Lorelei, and her name scarcely fits on a nametag.  It always makes grown ups' eyebrows rise and me chuckle.)  She feels pretty sorry for herself when her classmates ridicule her like all little kids--sigh--do.

And then the class meets Mrs Twinkle, the music teacher.  "Her voice was like something out of a dream, as was everything else about her."  The entire class is mesmerized by this "indescribable wonder"--I love when Kevin Henkes and other authors note little kids' naive and beautiful infatuations like this... 

Anyway, back to Chrysanthemum.

The students all giggle and laugh yet again at Chrysanthemum's name until Mrs Twinkle finds out about why they are laughing.  And then she tells him, simply: "My name is long.  My name would scarcely fit on a name tag.  I am named after a flower.  My name is Delphinium."  Of course, Chrysanthemum bursts with pride.  She actually "blooms" according to Henkes. 

This is definitely one of the most clever and witty children's books we've ever read.  And Henkes gets it almost totally right this time with his humor: the wittiness and cleverness is completely child appropriate (he loses me in Julius, Baby of the World).  You've got to read it to appreciate all the flower references sprinkled throughout the pages.  And note the two books her father is reading when she comes home from school, too.  I think my only hesitation is that it does open up the true side of school: the not-so-nice kids who make fun of their classmates just because they can.  I'm in denial that that sort of thing will happen to my kids at some point. 

On the flip side, I appreciate the book a little more because maybe Lorelei will be in a position to be one of the not-so-nice students, and maybe she'll remember Chrysanthemum and be empathetic and kind.  My fingers and toes are crossed!

My Garden by Kevin Henkes

My Garden by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 3.5 stars

We're fans of Kevin Henkes, so we came across this book soon after it was released earlier this year.  It was Easter time, and we were all pretty tired of anything winter-related after one of the snowiest and coldest winters in a decade.  We were just getting into Henkes' great books, reading Owen and Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse and Weekend With Wendell and Chrysanthemum again and again and again.  When I spotted this one, with a gorgeous cover full of Spring flowers, you better believe I grabbed it and shoved it into our already-full library bag to check out.

I do like it.  It's a good book, with a sweet message that encourages gardening (something I like to encourage in our own house) and imagination.  The little girl is her mother's helper in the garden, and within a few pages takes off into her own imagination to tell the reader what her garden would be like.  I love many of the little girls ideas: She would have flowers that could change color just by thinking about them, and having patterned flowers, too.  The flowers would grow back just moments after she picks them! She'd have tomatoes as large as beach balls, an idea that made Lorelei's and my mouth water just thinking about it.

It's silly to complain about a book that made the New York Times Best Sellers List and stayed there for a few months.  But, of course, that's what I'm going to do.  Why can't the little girl just focus on the positive?  Why does Henkes have to have her say she doesn't like carrots, when there are probably way too many kids who push away their carrots and other vegetables?  Why does the little girl have to choose to have a jelly bean bush?  Don't those have a bunch of high-fructose corn syrup in them or something hideous like that?  If Jillian Michaels bought a children's book, this sure wouldn't be it! 

The pictures are so beautiful, though, that I have to forgive Henkes his shortcomings.  The garden in his book makes me impatient for our own flower garden to mature...right now there is way too much mulch where I want color to be!  We'll read this book a whole lot more, I know, and we'll appreciate its positives, because there are many.

Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes

Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 5 stars

If Lorelei ever chose a favorite anything, this might be her favorite everything.

We adore Lilly and will be eternally grateful to our wonderful neighbor for sharing it with us (and introducing us to Kevin Henkes). Lilly is so unique and funny and headstrong...she is so endearing, I think, because she's so kid-like. She trots around in fantastic red boots that you could only get away with if you were a little girl. Or, in this case, a little mouse. She is smitten with her teacher, a fun mouse-dude straight from the 70s who dares to suggest his rodent-students put their desks in a semicircle instead of boring lines. Lilly goes to school with new treasures purchased with her Grammy over the weekend and can't WAIT till sharing time to share them. Beloved Mr. Slinger firmly and understandably takes them away from her. She gets upset and draws a mean picture, which she quickly regrets when her belongings are returned to her, complete with a sweet note from Mr. Slinger. Oops.

Ok, maybe I love little Lilly because I make little rash decisions almost every day that I wish I could re-do just moments later. I might be known to put my foot in my mouth just every now and then...maybe. I love that Lorelei gets a little lesson thinking before you acting--especially putting something in writing when you're mad!--at this young an age. I love that Lilly's parents a) make her apologize to Mr. Slinger and b) support Mr. Slinger and how he reprimands their daughter. And I love how Lilly's father is the one to bake treats rather than his mother!

As in almost all of his other mouse books (Weekend with Wendell is the only exception I know of), Henkes throws in quirky little stuff for the grown ups to chuckle at. I appreciate that, and it's nice to have a book your child can appreciate on deeper levels in a few more years. This is a wonderful book--another one for the required reading list!

Owen by Kevin Henkes

Owen by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 5 stars

Owen is one of those humbling books that just impress the heck out of me. It is so clever, so well written, so full of quirky little pictures, so charming that you think MAN that Kevin Henkes is GOOD! And MAN did the Caldecott people get it right that year! If you've not read it, just stop what you're doing and order it up from your local library. Actually, this is one you can buy without reading it first. Trust me--it's that good. Right up there with The Very Hungry Caterpillar, but for toddlers and preschoolers.

Here's the gist of the story: Owen is a little mouse who is fiercely attached to his blanket, which his nosy-but-lovable neighbor, Mrs. Tweezers, suggests he cannot take to school with him. Mrs. Tweezers proposes three ways of helping Owen get rid of the blanket, but Owen outsmarts them all in cute preschooler ways. (For example, they try to take it away from him at night, a la the tooth fairy, but Owen stuffs his beloved Fuzzy down his pants.) In the end, Owen's mother has a perfectly brilliant solution of snip, snip, snipping and sew, sew, sewing the blanket into a bunch of little handkerchiefs. I don't know how Henkes makes Lorelei and me and all the other readers out there fall in love with little Owen within the first few pages, but he sure does. We are BIG fans of this book!

There are two other noteworthy things about this book: First, the illustrations are not just great, but there are a lot of them. They are interesting and chock full of little tidbits that you miss on the first, second, third, fourth....eleventh readings. So each time we read it, Lorelei finds some other little thing we've not seen before. This makes it a great book for her to read and look at on her own.

Second, Henkes obviously spends time thinking about how his books sound when read aloud. This is super important (of course) for this age bracket, and something that green authors usually miss. His great books have that sing-songy quality that have a rhythm and pattern that make them fun and interesting to read aloud. He doesn't have to do this, but it's this added bonus that makes his work--especially Owen--just priceless.

Three cheers for Owen!