Sun and Spoon - Softcover

Ten-year-old Spoon Gilmore is consumed with one worry--that he will forget his beloved, recently deceased grandmother. The solution, he decides, is to somehow find a memento, something that he can touch and hold close so that her memory will live forever. The trouble begins when Spoon steals the memento (his grandmother's special solitaire deck of cards) from his grandfather's house. At first the cards give him the reassurance he longed for. But soon after, Spoon's grandfather confides that he too was finding comfort in the deck of cards and is now suffering from insomnia, fretting over what could have happened to them. Kevin Henkes drives this story with unusual characters, such as Spoon's eccentric younger sister who carries suitcases full of twigs, and Spoon himself, a complicated boy grappling with guilt and loss. With the finesse of a polished novelist, Henkes also introduces an abundance of delicious metaphors--his parents' vegetable garden (their nurturing and grounded ways); his grandmother's sun collection (a constant life force); a deck of solitaire cards (the solo journey of grief), and on it goes. But most impressive is Henkes's compassion for the painful mistakes that children often make while trying to sort out the inevitably disturbing emotions and events of childhood. American Bookseller Pick of the Lists, Publishers Weekly Best Book, School Library Journal Best Book. (Ages 9 to 12) --Gail Hudson

Kevin Henkes has been praised both as a writer and as an illustrator. He received the Caldecott Medal for Kitten’s First Full Moon; Caldecott Honors for Owen and Waiting; two Newbery Honors—one for Olive’s Ocean and one for The Year of Billy Miller—and Geisel Honors for Penny and Her Marble and for Waiting. His other books include Old Bear, A Good Day, Chrysanthemum, and the beloved Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse. Kevin Henkes lives with his family in Madison, Wisconsin.

www.kevinhenkes.com