Overview

From bestselling and award-winning husband-and-wife team Kevin Henkes and Laura Dronzek, Finding Things is a child-centered, cozy, and conceptually rich picture book that explores storytelling, connections, luck, nature, and responsibility. For readers of Antoinette Portis, Marla Frazee, and Laura Vaccaro Seeger. If you were on a walk and found a ball, you could take it home and play with it. You are likely to find many other wonderful things as you explore the world—maybe even a new friend—and that makes you very lucky. Award-winning creators Kevin Henkes and Laura Dronzek’s collaborations are always exceptional; full of vivid and deceptively simple observations of the world around us. Finding Things features a succinct text and exquisite, emotionally rich illustrations, and it encourages readers to be creative and to find purpose and connections in what surrounds them. A terrific read-aloud to treasure and share, as well as a great title for visual literacy and emerging readers, Finding Things is also a wonderful choice for social and emotional learning.

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9780063245662

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Reviews

“When a seemingly throwaway piece of text, like an object that is lost, sticks around long enough to turn into a story, that’s a picture book. When the illustrations elevate the words the way these do, that’s a masterpiece. A manual for constructing a contented life, this book makes children look deeper and behave with deliberation.” — School Library Journal (starred review) “In a straightforward narrative that speaks directly to children, Henkes reflects on the treasures that are hidden in plain sight, just waiting for someone to see their potential. . . . The text is utterly true to a kid’s world in acknowledging limits. . . . This well-crafted picture book is simple, intriguing, and well attuned to its audience.” — Booklist (starred review) “Serendipitously encountered objects present themselves as truly valuable in this compact, thoughtful story about paradise found.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review) “An ode to noticing the little things. . . . Using no more words than you might find in a beginning reader, Henkes once again demonstrates his mastery for boiling a story down to its most essential parts. . . all painted with bright acrylic colors that pop off the page. Each element is as accessible as it is ripe for speculation. Found objects sometimes yield the simplest pleasures. Consider this book one such example.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review) “The story taps into the inherent caretaking tendencies of many young children. . . . Perfect for emerging readers. . . . Tableaux, dominated by simple square shapes, are reduced to their essentials: ball, flower, box, kitten—all “happy” in a warm home because the child took the time to notice them.” — Horn Book Magazine

Author Information

Kevin Henkes has been praised both as a writer and as an illustrator and is the recipient of the Children's Literature Legacy Award for his lasting contribution to literature for children. He received the Caldecott Medal for Kitten's First Full Moon; Caldecott Honors for Waiting and Owen; two Newbery Honors-one for Olive's Ocean and one for The Year of Billy Miller-and Geisel Honors for Waiting and Penny and Her Marble. His other books include Sun Flower Lion, A Parade of Elephants, Chrysanthemum, and the beloved Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse. Kevin Henkes lives with his family in a house in Madison, Wisconsin. Laura Dronzek is a painter whose work has been exhibited nationally. Her picture books include the acclaimed Birds, by Kevin Henkes; Oh!, by Kevin Henkes; White Is for Blueberry, by George Shannon; Tippy-Toe Chick, Go!, by George Shannon; Moonlight, by Helen V. Griffith; It Is Night, by Phyllis Rowand; and, most recently, When Spring Comes, by Kevin Henkes. She lives with her family in Madison, Wisconsin.

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