I Am Henry Finch
Written by Alexis Deacon
Illustrated by Viviane Schwarz
Henry is a finch. And he acts like a finch. Up in the morning with the flock. Says “Good morning” with all the finches. “Good afternoon,” “Good evening,” and “Good night” too. The only change in the routine is when the Beast shows up. The finches fly to a tree. Then Henry has a thought about being great. A thought that gets him swallowed by the Beast. Eventually, he plants a thought in the Beast’s head. “Open.” The Beast opens its mouth and out flies Henry. Safe again, Henry invites the other finches to have thoughts.
The wonderful illustrations in this entertaining book make up a good deal of the story. When inside the Beast, where it’s dark, the pages are black and the images are jumbled.
The book may be silly, but first graders will learn a lot about following their talents and about being a leader. As a read aloud, it’s a great tool for teachers and parents to interact with the kids.
Title: I Am Henry Finch- Author: Alexis Deacon
- Illustrator: Viviane Schwarz
- Published: Candlewick, 2015
- Reviewer: Sue Poduska
- Format: Hardcover, 40 pages
- Grade Level: K to 3
- Genre: Picture book
- ISBN: 978-0-7636-7812-8
