Art News | Acclaimed children’s author Jenn Bailey has released a new ‘Henry’ story – KC STUDIO

At the Los Angeles Public Library, author Jenn Bailey reads “A Friend for Henry” to a little boy named Benji, who said, “That’s me!” when he saw the picture of Henry.

“Henry and the Something New,” the latest read-aloud book by Kansas City-based Jenn Bailey with illustrator Mika Song, is about her lovable character Henry, a child with autism spectrum disorder.

Bailey made her debut as a children’s author with the publication of A Friend for Henry (Chronicle Books, 2019). The picture book, which features Henry, won a Schneider Family Honor from the American Library Association. She has also received the ALA Theodor Seuss Geisel Award and the ALA Schneider Family Book Award, among others.

Bailey earned her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and now lives and works as a writer and editor in Leawood, Kansas. In a recent interview, Bailey said, “These books are for young readers, and I want to help them feel successful.”

So each chapter has a little resolution. “I pay attention to the language I use, the way I construct my sentences, sentence length, even chapter length… I don’t go into that when I start writing, but that’s how I shape the structure of the book as I edit,” Bailey said.

“Henry and the Something New,” the second early chapter book with Henry, is both a treasure and an adventure. It is school trip day. Class ten is planning to go to the museum.

Although Henry is excited, he is also worried. He has never been to the museum before. But the museum has dinosaurs and “Henry loves dinosaurs.” Henry gives his permission to Mrs. Tanaka by placing it on her desk. His classmate Vivian tells Henry that her mother helps with field trips. They want to see the butterflies. Henry wants to see the dinosaurs. Vivian says, “The museum is very big,” suggesting that it might be difficult to find the dinosaurs. Henry says, “Dinosaurs are very big.” Henry thinks, “It will be difficult not to find them.”

Ms. Tanaka gives three rules for visiting the museum. Although Henry hears two rules, he doesn’t hear the last rule—to find something new. Once at the museum, an assigned helper asks Henry’s group what they want to see, but Henry forgets to say his answer out loud. So they visit the rock room, which is “full of rocks.” They visit the insect zoo, which is “full of insects.” The mummy tomb is “full of digging stuff.” Finally, Henry has had enough. He yells that he wants to see the “DINOSAURS!” Although Henry encounters difficulty in this simple but meaningful quest, he eventually makes it into a large room full of dinosaurs. On the way back to school, upon hearing the third rule, it touches Henry deeply.

Watercolor and ink drawings by Mika Song bring Henry to life. “I heard from an older child who is autistic why he appreciates the quiet pops of color in the chapter books… Opening that book and seeing the strong dark outlines and the subtle pops is really very calming for them. And it makes them feel safe and secure and gets them ready for the other difficult task, which is decoding reading,” Bailey said.

By telling such stories, Bailey hopes to convey ideas that challenge misconceptions about neurodivergent children while shaping narratives in which children like Henry see themselves represented.

Bailey says representation is important. She wants readers to find the books and see themselves in them, and for other readers to be able to immerse themselves in the story and experience what it’s like to be someone else entirely. New and experienced readers alike will be rooting for Henry for the next chapter book, which is in development.