Kevin Henkes (born November 27, 1960) is an American writer and illustrator of

children's books A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''chi ...

. As an illustrator he won the

Caldecott Medal The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service ...

for '' Kitten's First Full Moon'' (2004). Two of his books were

Newbery Medal The John Newbery Medal, frequently shortened to the Newbery, is a literary award given by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the author of "the most distinguished contr ...

Honor Books, ''

Olive's Ocean The novel ''Olive's Ocean'' was written by Kevin Henkes and was originally published in 2003. It received the 2004 Newbery Honor. The story's idea was taken from Kevin Henkes' question, "What was it like for authors growing up?" ''Olive's Oce ...

'' in 2004 and '' The Year of Billy Miller'' in 2014. His picture book ''

Waiting Waiting, Waitin, Waitin', or The Waiting may refer to: Film * ''Waiting'' (1991 film), a film by Jackie McKimmie * ''Waiting...'' (film), a 2005 film starring Ryan Reynolds * ''Waiting'', a 2007 film by Zarina Bhimji * ''Waiting'' (2015 film) ...

'' was named both a 2016 Caldecott Honor Book and a Geisel Honor Book. It was only the second time any author has won that combination of awards. In 2020, he won the

Children's Literature Legacy Award The Children's Literature Legacy Award (formerly the ''Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal'' or ''Wilder Award'') is a prize awarded by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to writers ...

Career

Kevin Henkes (pronounced HANK-us) thought he would be an artist until his junior year of high school when one of his teachers encouraged him in his writing efforts. He discovered that children's books combined both his literary and artistic interests. Henkes writes and illustrates children's

picture books A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The ima ...

, many of which feature

mice A mouse (: mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

as their main characters. He also writes middle-grade fiction. Henkes wrote his first book during his freshman year in college. The book's theme deals with how a child describes the pleasures of occasional

solitude Solitude, also known as social withdrawal, is a state of seclusion or isolation, meaning lack of socialisation. Effects can be either positive or negative, depending on the situation. Short-term solitude is often valued as a time when one may wo ...

. This theme is common in many of Henkes' later books. Henkes, one of five children, says that many of his storylines are inspired by his family and the neighborhood where he grew up in

Racine, Wisconsin Racine ( ) is a city in Racine County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the shore of Lake Michigan at the mouth of the Root River (Wisconsin), Root River, south of Milwaukee and north of Chicago. It is the List ...

. Henkes has written and illustrated around fifty critically acclaimed and award-winning picture books, early readers, and novels in his career thus far. Henkes' first book, ''All Alone'', was published in 1981 by

Greenwillow Books HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...

. More than 50 books followed, including ''

Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemums ( ), sometimes called mums or chrysanths, are flowering plants in the Asteraceae family. They are native to East Asia and northeastern Europe. Most species originate from East Asia, and the center of diversity is in China. Co ...

'' and '' Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse''. In 1994 Henkes was a runner-up for one of the premier

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

(ALA) children's book awards, the

for ''Owen'', one of his mouse books. In 2004, he was a runner-up for the

for ''

.'' The next year he won the Caldecott Medal for ''Kitten's First Full Moon'', recognizing that as the year's best children's picture book published in the U.S. All of his books to date have been published by Greenwillow Books. Henkes won the inaugural Phoenix Picture Book Award in 2013 for ''Owen''. The Phoenix Awards from the

Children's Literature Association The Children's Literature Association (ChLA) is a non-profit association, based in the United States, of scholars, critics, professors, students, librarians, teachers, and institutions dedicated to studying children's literature.Margaret W. Denman ...

recognize the best books that did not win major awards when they were first published twenty years earlier. In 2014, he received a Newbery Honor for his book, ''The Year of Billy Miller''. In 2020 Henkes was awarded the ALA's Children's Literature Legacy Award, celebrating his entire body of work. Henkes and his wife, Laura Dronzek, have been collaborating on a series of picture books based on the four seasons. Henkes writes the story, while Dronzek provides the acrylic painting illustrations. The next title expected is ''Winter is Here.''

Early and personal life

Henkes was born November 27, 1960, in Racine, Wisconsin. He is a graduate of the

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

. He lives in Madison with his wife, artist Laura Dronzek, and their two children.

Awards and honors

Henkes has won numerous awards for both his books and as an author. In 2007, Henkes delivered the Arbuthnot Honor Lecture, an honor bestowed upon "an individual of distinction in the field of children’s literature ... chosen to write and deliver a lecture that will make a significant contribution to the world of children’s literature." In 2008, he won the Council for Wisconsin Writers' Major Achievement Award. In 2009, he was a finalist for the

Astrid Lindgren Prize The Astrid Lindgren Prize () is a Swedish literary award for children's literature named after the Swedish writer Astrid Lindgren. The prize was instituted by the publishing house Rabén & Sjögren in 1967 to honour Lindgren on her 60th birthda ...

and won the Jeremiah Ludington Award, which honors "an individual who has made a significant contribution to the paperback book business." Lastly, in 2020, he won the Children’s Literature Legacy Award honoring an author or illustrator, published in the United States, whose books have made a "significant and lasting contribution to literature for children." In 1987,

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

named ''Once Around the Block'' one of the Best Books of the Year. In 2017, the

American Booksellers Association The American Booksellers Association (ABA) is a non-profit trade association founded in 1900 that promotes independent bookstores in the United States. ABA's core members are key participants in their communities' local economy and culture, and to ...

inducted '' Kitten's First Full Moon'' into their Picture Book Hall of Fame. '' The Year of Billy Miller'' was a

New York Times bestselling ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

book. ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...

'' and ''

The Horn Book Magazine ''The Horn Book Magazine'', founded in Boston in 1924, is the oldest bimonthly magazine dedicated to reviewing children's literature. It began as a "suggestive purchase list" prepared by Bertha Mahony and Elinor Whitney Field, proprietors of t ...

'' named it one of the best books of 2013. ''Waiting'' was a New York Times bestselling book. ''Kirkus Reviews'' and ''The Horn Book'' named it one of the best books of 2013. ''The Horn Book'' has included many of Henkes's other books on their lists of the best children's books of the year: ''Jessica'' (1989), ''Julius, the Baby of the World'' (1990), ''

'' (1991), ''Words of Stone'' (1992), ''Owen'' (1993), ''Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse'' (1996), ''Olive’s Ocean'' (2003), ''A Good Day'' (2007), ''Old Bear'' (2008), ''Birds'' (2009), ''Penny and Her Doll'' (2012), ''Penny and Her Marble'' (2013), ''Waiting'' (2015), ''Egg'' (2017), ''A Parade of Elephants'' (2018), ''Penny and Her Sled'' (2019), ''Billy Miller Makes a Wish'' (2021), and ''Oh, Sal'' (2022).

Publications

Novels

Standalone books

* ''Return to Sender'' (1984, ) * ''Two Under Par'' (1987, ) * ''The Zebra Wall'' (1988, ) * ''Words of Stone'' (1992, ) * ''Protecting Marie'' (1995, ) * ''Sun & Spoon'' (1997, ) * ''The Birthday Room'' (1999, ) * ''Olive's Ocean'' (2003, ) * ''Bird Lake Moon'' (2008, ) * ''Junonia'' (2011, ) * ''Sweeping up the Heart'' (2019, ) * ''Oh, Sal'' (2022, )

''Billy Miller'' books

The ''Billy Miller'' books are published by

. * '' The Year of Billy Miller'' (2013, ) * ''Billy Miller Makes a Wish'' (2021, )

Picture books

Standalone books

* ''All Alone'' (1981, ) * ''Clean Enough'' (1982, ) * ''Margaret & Taylor'' (1983, ) * ''Bailey Goes Camping'' (1985, ) * ''Grandpa and Bo'' (1986, ) * ''Once Around the Block,'' illustrated by Victoria Chess (1987, ) * ''Jessica'' (1989, ) * ''Shhhh'' (1989, ) * ''The Biggest Boy'', illustrated by Nancy Tafuri (1995, ) * ''Good-bye, Curtis'', illustrated by

Marisabina Russo Marisabina Russo (née Stark; born 1 May 1950) is a children's book author and illustrator. She has written and illustrated over twenty books for children and young adults. Her most notable books include ''The Line Up Book'' (winner of the ...

(1995, ) * '' Circle Dogs'', illustrated by

Dan Yaccarino Dan Yaccarino (born May 20, 1965) is an American author, illustrator, television writer, and producer, who is known for his animated series, children's books and award-winning imagery. Yaccarino created the Nick Jr. preschool series ''Oswald''. ...

(1998, ) * ''Oh!'' (1999, ) * '' Kitten's First Full Moon'' (2004, ) * ''So Happy!'' (2005, ) * ''A Good Day'' (2007, ) * ''Old Bear'' (2008, ) * ''Birds'', illustrated by Laura Dronzek (2009, ) * ''My Garden'' (2010, ) * ''Little White Rabbit'' (2011, ) * ''When Spring Comes: An Easter And Springtime Book For Kids'', illustrated by Laura Dronzek (2016, ) * ''Egg'' (2017, ) * ''In the Middle of Fall'', illustrated by Laura Dronzek (2017, ) * ''A Parade of Elephants'' (2018, ) * ''Winter Is Here'', illustrated by Laura Dronzek (2018, ) * ''Summer Song'', illustrated by Laura Dronzek (2020, ) * ''Sun Flower Lion'' (2020, ) * ''

A House A House were an Irish rock band that where active in Dublin from 1985 to 1997, and recognized for the clever, "often bitter or irony laden lyrics of frontman Dave Couse ... bolstered by the and'sseemingly effortless musicality". The single " En ...

'' (2021, ) * ''Little Houses'', illustrated by Laura Dronzek (2020, ) * ''The World and Everything in It'' (2023, )

''Mouse'' books

The ''Mouse'' books are published by

. * ''A Weekend with Wendell'' (1986, ) * '' Sheila Rae, the Brave'' (1987, ) * ''Chester's Way'' (1988, ) * ''Julius, the Baby of the World'' (1990, ) * ''Chrysanthemum'' (1991, ) * ''Owen'' (1993, ) * '' Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse'' (1996, ) * ''Wemberly Worried'' (2000, ) * ''Sheila Rae's Peppermint Stick'' (2001, ) * ''Owen's Marshmallow Chick'' (2002, ) * ''Julius's Candy Corn'' (2003, ) * ''Lilly's Chocolate Heart'' (2003, ) * ''Wemberly's Ice-Cream Star'' (2003, ) * ''A Box Full of Lilly'' (2006, ) * ''Lilly's Big Day'' (2006, )

''Penny'' books

The ''Penny'' books are published by

. * ''Penny and Her Doll'' (2012, ) * ''Penny and Her Song'' (2012, ) * ''Penny and Her Marble'' (2013, ) * ''Penny and Her Sled'' (2019, )

Notes

References

External links

*
Caldecott Medal

Kevin Henkes Audio Name Pronunciation
at TeachingBooks.net * {{DEFAULTSORT:Henkes, Kevin 1960 births American children's writers Caldecott Medal winners American children's book illustrators Newbery Honor winners Writers from Madison, Wisconsin Writers from Racine, Wisconsin Writers from Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Wisconsin Writers who illustrated their own writing Caldecott Honor winners Children's Literature Legacy Award winners