Post #10: Kitten's First Full Moon

Title: Kitten’s First Full Moon
Author & Illustrator: Kevin Henkes
Category: Caldecott Medal Award Book

Kitten’s First Full Moon has the look and feel of a really old-fashioned book. I think that’s why I liked it so much. It reminded me of books that I read when I was a little girl. The illustrations were simple, so simple in fact that they did not in any way overshadow the story. The story was very simple as well. This charming little story – that would be perfectly suited to bedtime reading – tells about kitten’s first glimpse of a full moon. Kitten thinks that the big round white ball in the sky is an inviting bowl of milk. All of the illustrations are black, and white, and shades of gray charcoal. Everything is outlined in dark black lines so that the images just seem to “pop”. They are incredibly simple, basic little drawings – not lifelike at all – but appealing in an effortless way. Kitten stretches toward to sky and sticks out her tongue to catch a drop of milk, but catches a bug instead. Every other page features kitten in the lower left corner and the moon in the upper right corner. Between them is just white space and the words, “Still, there was the little bowl of milk, just waiting.” The repetition of this line and this predictable page would be very appealing to kids. I imagine that this is the kind of book kids would want read over and over again. Kitten tries and tries to reach the bowl of milk / moon. She pulls and stretches and tumbles. She cannot reach it. Kitten runs toward the moon and climbs a tree, trying to reach it. She sees the reflection of the moon in a pond below and races down to dive in. Kitten gets soaked, but still has no milk. At the end of the story, Kitten is wet, sad, and tired – so she heads back home, dejected. When she arrives, she finds a big bowl of milk on her step, just waiting for her. The book ends with the words “Lucky Kitten” – Kitten curled up beside the empty bowl and the moon shining down on her. Kevin Henkes’ Caldecott Medal Award Winning Book Kitten’s First Full Moon shares many similarities with his other pictures books, such as A Good Day, Old Bear, and My Garden. Of course, the stark contrast is the lack of color in Kitten’s First Full Moon. However, the drawings are created in much the same style. The heavy outline is present in the illustrations in the other books as well. Henkes also has a series of Mouse Books featuring characters like Wendell, Wemberly, Chester, and Chrysanthemum. Henkes’ book Olive's Ocean was a 2004 Newbery Honor book and the book Owen was a 1994 Caldecott Honor book. The new thing I learned from reading this book is that impressive, even award-winning, artwork can be simple and basic. I really am beginning to realize that the Caldecott Medals and Honors recognize a wide range of accomplishments in the area of illustrations. The styles, media, and colors used in the award books vary widely. It’s good to see that diversity is recognized as an important factor in children’s books, even in the illustrations.