Henry and Mudge and the Forever Sea

Rylant, Cynthia. Henry and Mudge and the Forever Sea. Illustrated by Sucie Stevenson. Simon Spotlight, 1997. 48 pages. $3.99. ISBN 9780689810176.

Summary:

Beach day with Henry, Henry’s dad, and Henry’s big dog, Mudge! It’s Mudge’s first beach trip and Henry is sure he’ll like it. The family packs up their bags and car and set off for an adventure. Through the four chapters, they enjoy the beach in different ways: bodysurfing (Mudge watches at shore’s edge) and building sand castles (Mudge digs a hole and takes a nap); they eat hotdogs and SnoCones and find a crab. It’s a busy and satisfying day and Mudge learns a lot about the beach!

Curriculum Connections:

This series is perfect for readers at Level 1 or 2: ready for a few challenges, but with familiar characters, and illustrations that support the text. Stevenson’s illustrations are loose, fun, and colorful: they demonstrate vibrant expressions and all of the busy actions that go along with the story.

Personal Reflections:

Mudge and Henry have a special friendship that any only child will envy. They share all of the small and large adventures of life together. The series is popular with readers who are ready to read on their own or aloud to an adult. One second-grader told me that she loves these books because she wishes she had a dog like Mudge.

Awards:

Age/Interest Range:

K-8

Genre/Themes:

Realistic Fiction, Friendship, Pets

Read-Alikes:

Other Rylant series books will engage readers with gentle humor: Mr. Putter and Tabby, Poppleton, and the Henry and Mudge spin-off series books, Annie and Snowball, and Puppy Mudge.