Genre 1, Book Review 1: KITTEN’S FIRST FULL MOON by Kevin Henkes (author, illustrator)

My first book review will be discussing the children's picture book Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes. 

Image: Wikipedia

Bibliographic Data
 

Henkes, Kevin. 2004. Kitten's First Full Moon. USA: Greenwillow Books. ISBN: 0060588284. 

Plot Summary

In this cute tale, Kitten mistakes the moon for a bowl of milk and tries to drink from it. Kitten hopefully chases after the moon, often with humorous results. The story has a happy ending, with Kitten returning home to find a bowl of milk waiting for her on the porch where she started her adventure.

Critical Analysis

Kevin Henkes wrote and illustrated this book for a target audience of preschool to Kindergarten age children. The story's simple prose has a steady tempo that helps sustain the story's suspense. The refrain “Still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting” teasingly pulls the reader forward as Kitten fails, gets up, and tries again and again. The black-and-white pictures set the nighttime mood, and show to the reader Kitten's feelings and challenges as she struggles to obtain her elusive goal. This story has action, suspense, and humor, which makes it delightful for children and parents to enjoy together. It is an excellent book choice for children who like cats, animal stories, the night, or a good romping adventure! 

 

Awards

Kitten's First Full Moon has won the numerous awards, including:

• ALA Notable Children's Book 
• Book Sense Book of the Year Award, 2005 and 2004 
• Bulletin Blue Ribbon (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
• Caldecott Medal, 2005
• Charlotte Zolotow Award, 2005 
• Elizabeth Burr / Worzalla Award, 2005
• New York Public Library's "One Hundred Titles for Reading and Sharing" 
• New York Times Best Illustrated Book, 2004 
• Parents' Choice Award, 2004
• Publishers Weekly Best Book
• School Library Journal Best Book 
• Texas 2X2 Reading List 
• White Ravens Award, 2005

Reviews

Booklist: “Henkes' text ... tells a warm, humorous story that's beautifully extended in his shimmering, gray-toned artwork.”

Publishers Weekly: "The narrative and visual pacing will keep children entranced, and the determined young heroine and her comical quest will win them over." 

 

School Library Journal: “An irresistible offering from the multifaceted Henkes. … Kids will surely applaud this cat's irrepressible spirit.”

Connections

Enrichment Activities

Discuss with your kids how Kitten mistook the moon for a bowl of milk. Have you ever mistaken an object for something else, or imagined that one object could be something else? How would you describe the moon in its different phases? Do you ever imagine objects in the clouds when they drift by? Can you see the different objects by connecting the stars in the sky at night, or see the Man in the Moon? What else might you see in the night sky?

Discuss with your kids why Kitten couldn't catch the moon. Why does it look so close, yet she couldn't reach it? Children can go outside with their parents at night to stargaze, or look at planes going by in the daytime to see distant objects. You can also have the children look at objects in different ways, like through a telescope or a magnifying glass. Have them look at an object up close, then step back ten feet to see what it looks like from a distance. McGraw-Hill provides activities like this on their website: http://treasures.macmillanmh.com/california/students/grade1/book5/unit5/kitten-s-first-full-moon

Discuss with your kids Kitten's determination. She tried really hard to reach the moon so she could drink it. Have you ever worked hard for something but didn't get it? How did you feel? Can you think of one thing you would really like to have? What do you think you would have to do to get it? What are the chances you would succeed? How do you know when you should keep going, or give up?

 

Related Readings

Cat stories:

• Puss in Boots by Charles Perrault; Fred Marcellino (Illustrator); Malcolm Arthur (Translator) (Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), 1990)

• A Kitten's Year by Nancy Raines Day (Author); Anne Mortimer (Illustrator) (Katherine Tegen Books, 1999)

Other animal stories:

• My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann (Roaring Book Press, 2002)
• The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009) 

Moon / Nighttime stories:

• Moongame by Frank Asch (Aladdin, 2000)
• The Sun, the Moon and the Stars by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace (Houghton, 2003)
  
  

Adventure stories: 

• The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster; Chris Raschka (Illustrator) (Michael Di Capua Books, 2005)

• The House in the Night by Susan Marie Swanson (Houghton, 2008)