Reading again about the preschoolers' reactions when I read it back then, I've decided I'm going to read it to the Ladybugs and Bumblebees when we get back from the Thanksgiving break. (We do have it in the library now.) They're a little older than our former preschoolers. I'll see if they like it as much. And I'll see if they see the mindfulness connection. I'll keep you posted.
(And I'll also try to write a little more often.)
Here's the previous post, from April 2007:
"A good book!
I'm going to post the whole text of my review that ran this week in The News Tribune, for three reasons: Because it's short, because I love the book so much ... and because it goes into the paid archives in a very short time.
The preschool class I read it to is our very own Ladybugs and they did indeed ask me to read it again as soon as I was done ... and a third time after that.
Kevin Henkes has a good website.
Here's my review:
The world of a 3-year-old can turn on a dime. He gets a cookie. The milk spills. Mom wipes it up and gives him another cookie. Smiles to screams and back again in under a minute.
The brilliant Kevin Henkes proves he understands that world perfectly in his latest picture book, “A Good Day.”
An adult thumbing through this deceptively simple gem might not get it. It contains barely over 100 words and the barest of plots.
A bird loses a feather. A pup gets tangled in a leash. A fox can’t find his mother. And a squirrel drops an acorn.
Then it all turns on the aforementioned dime. The feather is forgotten and the little yellow bird flies high into the sky. The dog untangles himself and romps in the dandelions. The fox finds his mother. The squirrel finds a better acorn.
At the end, a little girl finds a beautiful yellow feather and runs to her mother proclaiming: “What a good day.”
I read it to a preschool class and I’d barely closed the book before they chorused: “Read it again.”
It’s not simple at all when you think about it.
Young children, like the puppy, are just learning to use patience to solve problems. They’re learning, like the bird, to bounce back from small hurts; like the fox, that moms and dads come back; and, like the squirrel, that sometimes you just get lucky.
And the little girl? If you know a preschooler, you know about the pure joie de vivre that erupts daily at the smallest of inspirations.
The illustrations, also by Henkes, are perfect.
The style is closer to his 2005 Caldecott Medal title, “Kitten’s First Full Moon,” than his wildly popular “mouse” books, which include as “Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse,” “Chrysanthemum” and “Owen,” which won a Caldecott Honor for illustration.
Seattle Children’s Theatre has staged a play based on “Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse.”
For “A Perfect Day,” Henkes used watercolors in ice cream colors. The expressions of distress and happiness on his characters are rendered simply, but so eloquently that children will empathize completely.
A wonderful last page, where the girl runs toward the house calling for her mother, includes all the animals.
Henkes was nearly a child prodigy as a children’s book creator. He got his first publishing contract for a picture book at age 19. He has published more than 30 books for children, including several fine novels. One, “Olive’s Ocean,” was a Newbery Honor book for outstanding writing.
Add him to the Authors-not-to-miss list."
Talk to you soon!
