Horrid Henry

Review by Booklist Review

Horrid Henry is a big hit in the U.K., and now he has arrived on U.S. shores. The little devil is the counterpoint to his brother, Perfect Peter. This book features four short stories about the siblings. In the first and the funniest, Henry decides to be the perfect one for a change. This throws the family dynamics off-kilter and causes Peter to take a turn for the worse. In the second, Henry ruins a dance recital. Henry and his friend, Moody Margaret, play pirates in the third vignette but struggle over who will take possession of Captain Hook's hook. And in the fourth, Horrid Henry's Holiday, Henry helps a camping trip go bad. Fine fare for beginning readers, this clever book should find a ready audience. Ross' illustrations, which are reminiscent of Quentin Blake's work, add to the amusing goings-on.--Cooper, Ilene Copyright 2009 Booklist

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.

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Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Horrid Henry, star of the enormously popular British series, is finally crossing over to the U.S., and kids who appreciate a mischievous streak will welcome his arrival. In this first book, Henry discovers that being good-like his brown-nosing, vegetable-loving brother, Perfect Peter-can be its own brand of mischief; Henry also disrupts his dance class and fights with his neighbor Moody Margaret ("When he put a spider on her arm, Margaret laughed. When he pulled her hair, Margaret pulled his harder"). In the fourth story, the family goes on vacation, where (as is often the case) Henry's antics work in his favor: on the rainy camping trip, he uses the tent pegs for a campfire, causing the tent to collapse and flood, and forcing his family to comfier accommodations. Henry's over-the-top behavior, the characters' snappy dialogue and Ross's hyperbolic line art will engage even the most reluctant readers-there's little reason to suspect the series won't conquer these shores as well. Pubs simultaneously with Horrid Henry's Stinkbomb, Horrid Henry and the Mega-Mean Time Machine and Horrid Henry Tricks the Tooth Fairy; two additional volumes are due in June. Ages 7-10. (Apr.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

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Review by School Library Journal Review

Gr 2-4-In the first book, four short chapters follow Henry as he tries to have a perfect day (and upstages his brother, Perfect Peter), disrupts a dance recital with his imitation of a pterodactyl, meets his piratical match in neighbor Moody Margaret, and sabotages a family camping vacation. In the second book, he constructs a time machine from a box and tricks his brother into believing it really does send him into the future, discovers surprises at a fancy French restaurant (he likes snails!), ruins a family walk in the country, and finds himself the target of his brother's revenge. Short, easy-to-read chapters will appeal to early readers, who will laugh at Henry's exaggerated antics and relate to his rambunctious personality. The boy always seems to end up getting what he wants-though in roundabout ways-and this series will most likely be as popular in the United States as it has been in Britain. Ross's comical illustrations perfectly complement the texts.-Terrie Dorio, Santa Monica Public Library, CA Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information.

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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Excerpt from Story 1: Horrid Henry"s Perfect Day

Henry was horrid.
Everyone said so, even his mother.
Henry threw food, Henry grabbed, Henry pushed and shoved and pinched. Even his teddy bear, Mr. Kill, avoided him when possible.

His parents despaired.
"What are we going to do about that horrid boy?" sighed Mom.

"How did two people as nice as us have such a horrid child?" sighed Dad.

When Horrid Henry"s parents took Henry to school they walked behind him and pretended he was not theirs.

Children pointed at Henry and whispered to their parents, "That"s Horrid Henry."
"He"s the boy who threw my jacket in the mud."
"He"s the boy who squashed Billy"s beetle."
"He"s the boy who..." Fill in whatever terrible deed you like. Horrid Henry was sure to have done it.

Horrid Henry had a younger brother. His name was Perfect Peter.
Perfect Peter always said "Please" and "Thank you."
Perfect Peter loved vegetables.
Perfect Peter always used a hankie and never, ever picked his nose.
"Why can"t you be perfect like Peter?" said Henry"s mom every day.

As usual, Henry pretended not to hear. He continued melting Peter"s crayons on the radiator.
But Horrid Henry started to think.
"What if I were perfect?" thought Henry. "I wonder what would happen."

When Henry woke the next morning, he did not wake Peter by pouring water on Peter"s head.
Peter did not scream.
This meant Henry"s parents overslept and Henry and Peter were late for Cub Scouts.
Henry was very happy.
Peter was very sad to be late for Cub Scouts.
But because he was perfect, Peter did not whine or complain.

On the way to Cub Scouts Henry did not squabble with Peter over who sat in front. He did not pinch Peter and he did not shove Peter.
Back home, when Perfect Peter built a castle, Henry did not knock it down. Instead,  Henry sat on the sofa and read a book. Mom and Dad ran into the room.

"It"s awfully quiet in here," said Mom. "Are you being horrid, Henry?"
"No," said Henry.
"Peter, is Henry knocking your castle down?"
Peter longed to say "yes." But that would be a lie.
"No," said Peter.

Excerpted from Horrid Henry by Francesca Simon All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

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