Chrysanthemum+(2)

__Chrysanthemum __ Written and Illustrated by: Kevin Henkes Book Reviewer: Samantha Contreras



**Summary**: Chrysanthemum is about a young girl who absolutely adores her name. Chrysanthemum's parents tell her how absolutely perfect she is and her name is just as perfect as she is. She loved the way her name sounded until one day Chrysanthemum started school. When the teacher called Chrysanthemum's name, the whole class giggled and made hurtful remarks about her perfect name. Although, Chrysanthemum did not feel like her name was so perfect anymore. Now, she thought her name was absolutely atrocious. The children at school made fun of Chrysanthemum all day at school. "Let's pick her," they said. "Let's smell her," they said. Chrysanthemum almost give up on her name and wants to change it, until Mrs. Twinkle tells the class how absolutely perfect she thinks Chrysanthemum's name is. Mrs. Twinkle has a very long name herself and she plans to name her baby a very long name as well.

**Book Review**: Chrysanthemum was among the first set of books that I owned as a child. I loves the illustrations and how they connected to the text on each page. I also think the name Chrysanthemum is absolutely perfect and felt sorry for her when her classmates teased her. I think this illustrates a point on how mean children can be to each other, and just how damaging school can be to a child. This book emphasizes bullying the psychological effects it has on a child, which is a bold situation to acknowledge in children's literature. However, I think this heavy topic is crafted brilliantly through the plot of Chrysanthemum and there is a happy ending to the teasing.

**Writing Style**: Kevin Henkes incorporates rich vocabulary into his writing. These words should be taught to first and second graders. He also uses important literary devices to engage a beginning reader. For example, repetition. "Chrysanthemum, Chrysanthemum, Chrysanthemum." This is helpful because a child can predict what will come next in the sequence. This encourages success with reading. Another literary device that Henkes uses is a motif. Chrysanthemums name is the concept that is consistent throughout the entire course of events.

**Example of Vocabulary**: Wilted Dreadful Scarcely Envious Discontented

**Author Bio**: Kevin Henkes wrote and illustrated this book and a number of other children's books. He has been writing and illustrating for over 30 years. Kevin Henkes says him, "When my work is going well, it’s transformative. I feel as if I’ve been removed from ordinary time and am living in some parallel universe, a world of grace and wonder." His love for children's literature is genuine and it shows through his work. Below are some awards he's received for his work.

**Awards**: ALA Notable Children's Book <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Horn Book Fanfare <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">NCTE Notable Children’s Trade Book in the Language Arts

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**Bibliographic Information**:
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">ISBN-13: 9780688147327
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Publication date: 12/28/2008
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Edition number: 1
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Pages: 32
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Sales rank: 10,219
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Age range: 3 - 5 Years
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">Lexile: 460L

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**Related Links**: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">http://www.kevinhenkes.com/book/chrysanthemum-2/ <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/chrysanthemum-kevin-henkes/1100569005?ean=9780688147327

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 140%;">**Read Aloud**- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxMlxbgYvLI