A Good Day

Reviewed by Max Aures (age 3 ½) and Mom for Reader Views (04/10) "A Good Day" by Kevin Henkes is about how a bad day can turn into a good day. Max: "Bad things happened in the front of the book. Like the bird lost his yellow feather and the dog got her leash all twisted around the fence. Our dog gets her leash twisted around things too, like trees. Then good things happen at the back of the book. I liked that. I liked when the girl found the feather just like I found a feather in the yard!" Parent's comments: My son and I enjoyed the simple text and illustrations in "A Good Day." The main premise of how a bad day can turn into a good day is a great one and we enjoyed seeing how this came to be in the story. This sturdy board book will stand up even to the littlest of fingers and we recommend this story to those ages four and under.

I got this book for my 2-1/2 year old daughter, and we all really love it! It's very short but manages to effectively fit in a very sweet (but not preachy) message that there is always a bright side when we are feeling down! The illustrations are very pretty but also simple. The way the pages are arranged is very nice and simple and creates a good rhythm when reading the book. In fact, it could also make a really great 'learn-to-read' book. My daughter loves it, and she loves to help 'read' it with us when my husband and I read it to her.

The Library of Congress summary cracks me up: "A bird, a fox, a dog and a squirrel overcome minor setbacks to have a very good day." It's a good thing Kevin Henkes, who has given us the verbose and precocious Lily, knows when to avoid phrases like "overcome minor setbacks." With gorgeous chunky pictures and giant easy-to-read-from-a-mile-away text, Henkes has empowered young Readers to independently navigate this surprisingly uncheesy story of "things aren't always as bad as they seem." I mention surprisingly uncheesy because I am typically turned off by sweet and tender, especially if it's text a kid can read independently. There's something to be said for original and uncheesy. Naturally broken into three parts, we first meet four troubled little animals. "It was a bad day ..." the story begins. "But then ..." like Life, sometimes we just need a different perpsective and a little patience to let us know that our troubles are soon resolved. I love that the text gradually becomes more lengthy and the vocab. more challenging. It will reward the diligent Reader, like the troubled little animals, with a happy ending and a good day.

2005 Caldecott Medal winner Kevin Henkes presents A Good Day, a children's picturebook featuring vivid, almost woodcut-style color illustrations. A little yellow bird, little white dog, little orange fox, and little brown squirrel each seem to be having a bad day at first - but bad days can easily be turned around into good days with a little luck, ingenuity, and persistence! A charming read-aloud story for the very young, especially novice readers ready to take their first step from the reading the simplest of sentences to slightly (but only slightly) more complex ones.

I have a 2 month old son, so I cannot say whether HE will like this book as much as I do, but I think it is wonderful. The illustrations are beautiful, the wording is limited simple, and the lesson important: even when things get you down, it will get better. Best of all, and uniquely, the loss of the feather for the little bird not only was forgotten by him, but made the day of a little girl who found it. I am a big fan of books that help kids learn how to make the most of life, and I think this one fits that bill completely.