Children's Book Monday

Chester's Way
by Kevin Henkes







Chester is a very particular mouse. The same thing for breakfast: toast with jam and peanut butter; carrying a miniature first-aid kit in his pocket - always - just in case. And wonderfully enough, his best friend, Wilson, is exactly the same way! That's why they are best friends.

Inseparable, they ride their bikes, using hand signals, play croquet, and happen to be hungry only at the same time. At Halloween, they only dress as things that go together: salt and pepper shakers, two mittens on a string. And they tenderly look out for one another - once, when Wilson accidentally swallows a watermelon seed, he cries because he is afraid that a watermelon plant will grow inside him. So Chester eats a seed, too! "Don't worry," Chester tells Wilson. "Now, if you grow a watermelon plant, I'll grow one, too!"

One day, Lilly moves into the neighborhood, and she has her own way of doing things. Chester and Wilson don't quite know how to be friends with Lilly, since she is so different, and what follows is a fun example of how to give and take in a friendship.

Corban, who is seven, promptly took the book out of my hands the moment we finished and proceeded to read it to Micah. They giggled over the pictures, and I overheard Micah saying, "We're just like Chester and Wilson! That's why we're best friends!"

Kids will love the descriptions of Chester and Wilson's idiosyncrasies, and Lilly's outrageous outfits. Parents will love the give and take between the new friends; when Lilly shows the boys how to "pop wheelies", they in turn show her how to use hand signals! Hooray for following the rules!

Happy reading!

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