Kitten's First Full Moon Review

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Henkes, Kevin. Kitten's First Full Moon. Greenwillow Books, 2004. ISBN: 0060588292

PLOT SUMMARY

This book was about a kitten who experiences her first full moon. She believes the moon

is a big bowl of milk, and she loves milk. This leads her on a quest for the milk, which

causes her to have many new experiences that involve her chasing down the milk on the

sidewalk, garden, field, pond, and eventually, a tree. Through all of these experiences,

she never conquers her quest for the milk until she goes back home.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Henkes' writing is simplistic in nature, as if talking to a child about a normal everyday experience for a kitten. He deals with the idea of searching for something not ready, yet, but after a time of patience being made available.

Time has a way of taking care of things. This idea was reflected by the ending statement in the story, “So she went back home-and there was a great big bowl of milk on the porch, just waiting for her. Lucky Kitten!" The kitten found was she was searching for from the beginning at her home.

This story followed the normal elements of a story, since it had the setting take place at night and outside and the sequence of events in the story followed one night in a kitten's life as the plot. As for the conflict in the story, the kitten was fighting her circumstances, since she wanted the milk, which made her the protagonist, because the reader wanted her to get the milk in the end, and the story was told from the third person point of view. The theme seemed to be that there are times when it is better to stay in one place and wait patiently than go searching for something. It was a good story to easily demonstrate the elements of a story to a reader.

The illustrations added tone to the story, because they were detailed and vivid, to the point that the reader didn't need to imagine what was happening with the words on the pages. The contrast of black, gray, and white helped the reader experience the setting, since the story took place at night with a full moon. It also helped the reader develop a sense of the kitten's character through the symbolism of the colors and night activities, which added to the nocturnal instincts and nature of the kitten.

This was a sweet story that reminded the reader that sometimes adventures will lead us back to our origin, where we discover that it was probably better to have just stayed and waited patiently for our answers.

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Publishers Weekly Best Book

New York Times Best Illustrated Book

Caldecott Medal

School Library Journal Best Book

New York Public Library's “One Hundred Titles for Reading and Sharing”

ALA Notable Children's Book

CONNECTIONS

*This book encourages the reader to wait and be patient for the things they desire the most in life.

*Use this story to help students develop short descriptive sentences.

*Other books for children about animals and their experiences by Kevin Henkes:

Henkes, Kevin. A Good Day. ISBN 006114018X

Henkes, Kevin. Old Bear. ISBN 0061552054