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Stuff I'm Reading

 As we get closer to the pub date for "Oh Sal," my mind is on the picture-book artist Kevin Henkes, and his quartet of "Penny"  books.


It's so hard to tell a story, and I think it's especially hard if you're using just a handful of words (appropriate for a child). "Penny and Her Doll" does the work very well, and it looks easy. The book is about a mouse who loves gardening; one day, among the roses, she learns that she has a package, a doll from her grandma.

The bulk of the story concerns naming. The mice in Penny's life have ideas--"Pinky," "Smiley," "Buttons"--but nothing seems adequate. It's only when Penny spends time with the doll, and reflects on the words that she herself really likes, that she stumbles on a suitable, simple name: "Rose." 

I think these characters and this story are unforgettable, even though so little happens. A child needs to make certain decisions on her own; this is how she starts to grow up. And that's what is happening when a child lands on the right name for her new doll.

I've never seen this process captured in a story--never before Kevin Henkes. Can't wait for the new book, arriving at the end of this current month.








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