Kevin Henkes has more than 30 picture books to his credit and is the author of nine novels for young adults, including “Olive’s Ocean.” The picture-book characters he hangs with include Owen, who loves his blankie; Lilly and her purple plastic purse; the very worried Wemberly; and Sophie, with her unwanted weekend guest.
His latest young-adult novel, “Bird Lake Moon,” tells the tale of two boys, Mitch Sinclair and Spencer Stone. When they meet at Bird Lake one summer, each boy is reeling from a personal tragedy. Their friendship has a rocky start, but as it grows, Mitch and Spencer help each other through some hard times.
Henkes (pronounced HENK-us) grew up in Racine, Wis., the fourth of five children, in a neighborhood full of kids. Now 47, he lives with his wife and two children in Madison, Wis.
Henkes has been praised for his ability to capture how kids think and feel. “It’s just part of being a writer, I guess,” he says. “As a writer, I am an observer. I do remember my childhood.”
The true test for him is how his writing sounds. “I read it aloud to myself, to see if it is right,” he says.
Reading aloud is a common occurrence in the Henkes household. He reads books to his son, 12, and daughter, 10, in the morning before school. “We keep a list of the books,” he says. “It’s over 100 now.”
As a child, Henkes spent hours at the library reading and at home drawing. He kept many of his favorite books, now well worn and dog-eared from several readings.
One of them is “Call It Courage” by Armstrong Sperry. The story takes place on an island in the South Pacific. A 12-year-old boy named Mafatu struggles to cope with the loss of his mother and overcome his terrible fear of the sea.
“I reread it many times,” Henkes says of the book, which won the Newbery Medal in 1941. “It was also illustrated by the author, and that really intrigued me.”
Many of Henkes’ novels center on loss, often the death of a loved one. Henkes isn’t sure why. “It’s the ultimate question, I guess. I think I was a kid who thought about those things. I don’t know why.”
Henkes got his first book contract as a 19-year-old college freshman. He traveled to New York with a story he had written and illustrated. One of his first appointments was with the top editor at Greenwillow Books.
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