Title: egg
Author/Illustrator: Kevin Henkes
Age Group: 0-4
Synopsis: Of four eggs, three hatch with expected results, but what are readers to make of the forth egg?
The Low Down:
Out this year, egg is a book with very little text. However, it still manages to deliver a sweet story by relying on more input from its readers. That makes this book lovely choice for young book lovers and emerging readers. It truly caters to this audience by also including expressive but simple illustrations that invoke and encourage imagination and creativity.
Almost every page of egg is broken into a grid. So, the story is presented in a way that is reminiscent of a comic book. The text that does appear in the book is repetitive and perfect for including little ones in the telling of the story. Essentially the story is about four eggs. Three hatch into brightly colored birds while the forth doesn’t hatch at all. When it finally does crack open (with some help) there’s a small alligator inside. He’s instantly abandoned by his “siblings” and finds himself alone and sad. However, just a page later his prospective family returns and they become friends. The story ends with them all watching the sun which slowly seems to become an egg.
Henkes continues with his usual standard by creating a story that is both accessible to children and successful in delivering its intended moral without bludgeoning the audience over the head. By presenting it in such a fashion that it invites the readers to easily take part in the story telling Henkes is making the story that much more relatable to his audience. As always, I love the colors and the simplicity with which he makes his point and am almost bouncing on my toes to read this with Bug. I love that he’ll be able to do almost all of the reading on his own, with just the slightest bit of guidance.
Story Tips:
- Reading through a book like this is very similar to story walking. Check out the link here for tips and suggestions.
I need more!
We LOVE Kevin Henkes. See my review on Waiting for more info about him and his other stories.
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