Owen - Hardcover

Kevin Henkes

4.25

17,752 ratings by Goodreads

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1856815404 ISBN 13: 9781856815406

Publisher: Jonathan Cape, 1995

View all copies of this ISBN edition:

Owen had a fuzzy yellow blanket. "Fuzzy goes where I go," said Owen. But Mrs. Tweezers disagreed. She thought Owen was too old for a blanket. Owen disagreed. No matter what Mrs. Tweezers came up with, Blanket Fairies or vinegar, Owen had the answer. But when school started, Owen't mother knew just what to do, and everyone -- Owen, Fuzzy, and even Mrs. Tweezers -- was happy.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

Review:

The clinical name is transitional object, but for young children, a beloved blanket is more like a lifeline. And that's exactly how Owen feels about his baby blanket, fondly named Fuzzy. The Owen-Fuzzy relationship is cruising along smoothly until a nosy neighbor, Mrs. Tweezers, leans over the fence and asks his parents, "Isn't he getting a little old to be carrying that thing around?" With kindergarten just around the corner, Owen's parents wonder if he should in fact relinquish his prized Fuzzy. Kevin Henkes uses his signature mouse characters and jewel-tone watercolors to explore the antics and foils of one mouse-boy, one rag-blanket, and two parents wondering how to help their son kick the habit. This is what Henkes does best--playfully bringing childhood fears and feelings to the surface while portraying real-life parent-child tensions. Mrs. Tweezers, a real sourpuss, is no help at all. She offers terrible over-the-fence advice, such as dipping Fuzzy in vinegar (as if to cure a nail-biting habit) or stealing the blanket in the night.

It is not until the eve of Owen's first day of kindergarten that his mother hatches the perfect solution. Ultimately, she finds a way that Owen can hang on to his first true love while also taking the next step into middle childhood--a solution that suits everyone, including Mrs. Tweezers. Caldecott Honor Book, Horn Book Fanfare Honor List, ALA Notable Book, Boston Globe/Horn Book Honor Book, School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, ALA Booklist Children's Editors' Choice. (Ages 3 and older) --Gail Hudson

About the Author:

Kevin Henkes is the award-winning creator of many books for children, including the Caldecott Medal Book Kitten’s First Full Moon, the Caldecott and Geisel Honor Book Waiting, the Newbery Honor Books The Year of Billy Miller and Olive’s Ocean, and several bestselling books about mice, including Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse and Chrysanthemum.

www.kevinhenkes.com

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.