Henny Penny

by Paul Galdone

Convinced the sky is falling, Henny Penny and a band of gullible friends march off to tell the king, only to meet their end at the hands of a wily fox.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Animals, Classics, Fiction, Fairy Tales, Birds

40 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1950

About the author

Paul Galdone (1907 - November 7, 1986) was a children's literature author and illustrator. He was born in Budapest and he emigrated to the United States in 1921. He studied art at the Art Student's League and New York School for Industrial Design. He served for the US Army during world War II.

He illustrated nearly all of Eve Titus' books including the Basil of Baker Street series which was translated to the screen in the animated Disney film, The Great Mouse Detective.

Galdone and Titus were nominated for Caldecott Medals for Anatole (1957) and Anatole and the Cat (1958). The titles were later named Caldecott Honor books in 1971.

He died of a heart attack in Nyack, New York. He was posthumously awarded the 1996 Kerlan Award for his contribution to children's literature. His retellings of classic tales like "The Little Red Hen" or "Three Billy Goats Gruff" have become staples.

Reviews

[Shelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I could think of is that one Golden Girls episode.

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wrote it wasn't me episode of The Golden Girls where they play in the play called Henny Penny and I decided to go ahead and read the book. So The Golden Girls made me read it. 🤣

[Shelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not quite sure why I picked up this book from the new arrivals shelf at the public library to share with my nearly 13 year old daughter, except for the fact that I grab all the new arrival books. We have a different version of Henny Penny that we would read again and again when my daughter was younger that is very similar to this one by Paul Galdone. When we were reading this last night my daughter interrupted to say very curtly “This book needs some pronouns.” I giggled so hard over that, such a different response from the little girl who would ask to hear the tale again and again.

That rambling personal story being said, I really enjoyed Galdone’s version with the gruesome yet cheerful ending.

[John Yelverton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book and it's crazy rhyming was one of my favorites as a child.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a real favorite of mine as a child--loved the rhyming names of the animals. I received this lovely edition by Paul Galdone for a Christmas gift this year.

[Shiyun li · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very cute nursery tale with somewhat sad ending...The story starts with Henny Penny hit bey an fallen acorn. She thought the sky is falling and she set off to tell the king. Along the way she met many friends, until they went to the foxy Loxy's cave and never seen again.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Do you ever totally forget how a kids' book ends as you're reading it to a kid? whoops! We were able to enjoy the sounds of the names without getting caught up on the ending. This was fun to read once but I imagine I'd hate to have to read it every night...

[Stacy Renee (LazyDayLit) · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting little tale of a hen who thinks the sky is falling!

We read this for B&R-1 to learn about tricky people.

[Heather McC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book for the first time (as an adult) when I got to the ending, I was suddenly shocked. A complete surprise out of left field, but still fun to read for the rhymes.

[AngeloBackFlip · Rating 5 out of 5]

good for you you look happy and healthy not me if you ever care to ask

[Allison (MB) Jones-Eason]

Text-to Teaching Connection (ELA): The students will listen to the story then match all the rhyming words that are on the worksheet. They will then come up with their own rhyming words using the think pair share method before sharing them with the class. Finally, we discuss the moral of the story.

Moral: Do not jump to a conclusion without first verifying the truth.

[Sharon Barrow Wilfong · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun book to read and a real tongue twister.

Henny Penny feels an acorn drop on her head and concludes that the sky is falling. She rushes off to tell the King. On the way she meets many friends who join her in her quest. She then meets a fox.

The ending is a little dark, but maybe intended as a lesson against foolish conclusions, believing rumors without proof or trusting people without knowing their true character.

[Gnweiss]

Henny Penny a famous children's book is retold and illustrated by Paul Galdone. This version of Henny Penny's setting has vivid art work, done in watercolor and pen and ink. Each of the character's names rhymes,Ducky Lucky , Turkey Lurkey and the list goes on. They are all flat characters with the exception of Foxy Loxy, he is a very rounded character. The plot is suspenseful and has a closed ending. The theme is not preachy but implies caution and trust of each other. The author uses anthropomorphism and onomatopoeia. It is a classic story and a great tool for parents and teachers teaching trust.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this version of the sky is falling story because it is a contrast to the contemporary prettied up versions with happy endings. This is a great companion piece to our basal reader Little Rabbit's Tale, although this ending is shocking to a few First grade students. By serendipity, this story in reading came up the same week as a field trip, and this version turned out to be a great Introduction to not going off with strangers. The traditional characters names such as Goosey Loosey and Foxy Loxy, along with the traditional looking art give this book the feel of a classic, which it is, in a way.

[Heidi-Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Once I started reading the book, I recognized the rhyming names. I didn't quite remember the ending, though I had a suspicion where the story was headed once we met the first non-fowl character (who turned out to be quite fowl!). The illustrations were nice. As the book description says--"clear and concise." Nothing too elaborate. For an early reader it can help remind them who all is being spoken off. The constant repeat is also good for a beginning reader, and could be good for use in a storytime as well. The silly and almost predictable names are also good for both of those aspects, too.

[Launna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the rhyming in this. It was fun to read but it left all of us feeling totally....., I don’t know, cheated, disappointed, deceived right along with the birds- I don’t know- just made you want to sit on the couch and mourn/ be mad at the fox. I get that it is life, and I like the accurate representation, just was totally unexpected and left us all feeling blah. Seems like a nice light fun book, but it isn’t.

[Kayla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just kidding- one more kid’s book review tonight. I liked the illustrations, but it was beyond laborious to read “Henny Penny, Cocky Locky, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, and Turkey Lurky” TWICE on every page. I started just saying “they” and “them” to simplify. Superfluous verbiage loses you stars. Sorry Henny Penny.

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

The sky is falling! Henny Penny manages to convince several other birds that they need to inform the king of the danger. The meet Foxy Loxy and are never heard from again. Foxy's family is introduced. Great illustrations.

[Stéphanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Une petite histoire amusante à lire à haute voix aux tout petits.

[AnnieM · Rating 3 out of 5]

Illustrations are great. I don’t remember all the animals getting eaten so now I go read a few other versions.

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just don't think this story needs to be told any more. Let it fade into obscurity with buttonhooks and whalebone corsets... ;)

LFL

[Gloria Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the illustration style and coloring but it was annoyingly way too repetitive.

[Crissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the artwork.

[The Gazillionth Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

“They went along and they went along and they went along”

I wanted to read this because of a Golden Girls episode I saw where they did the play, and I was just as surprised by the ending as Rose so I had to read it for myself. 😆 I like it, I think it’s interesting it’s not the typical ending of a kid’s book. I do know it’s a folktale after reading more about it (and yes I have seen the movie Chicken Little) The illustrations seemed familiar though so I am not sure if I read this young or looked at the book as a kid and just don’t remember.
If you haven’t heard of this before for some reason like me, just keep in mind if you have a very extremely sensitive young kid who loves animals when reading this for storytime. 😅
If I’d read this young I think I would have just had a permanent jaw drop all day and it probably would have become a favorite book. 😂








My Rating System 📖 (but I'm indecisive so ratings subject to change and not be consistent with my scale. A 4 star may actually be a 5 star and a 3 star may be a 4.5 star)


1 star: hated it. Would never recommend
2 stars: Not my cup of tea, but could be somebody else's
3 stars: I liked it well enough, I don't know if I'd reread, but I
would recommend if occasion arose
4 stars: I really liked it!! I would reread one day. I'd
recommend if occasion arose
5 stars: I LOVED IT!! I shall rave about it even if nobody
listens
*half stars get rounded up. For example, 3.5 stars will become 4 stars

[Melanie Duvic · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henny Penny is a silly hen with a lot of stress. Henny Penny believes the sky is about to collapse one day after something falls and strikes her on the head, prompting her to inform the king. She makes a major mistake while traveling to visit the king, despite the fact that the sky isn't actually falling. With the help of a scenario where Henny Penny must control her emotions, this book promotes social-emotional growth. Children will soon understand that Henny Penny got struck by an acorn and that she was overreacting by thinking the sky was falling. From reading this story, children are able to connect how they manage their feelings if they overreact about something. This fairytale book is just adorable. When she believes that the sky is about to collapse, Henny Penny becomes a nervous mess, and it doesn't help that her friends believe her story without question. I really like the illustrations in this story, and I think students would like hearing it read aloud in class.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Folk Literature

Summary:
This is a classic Chicken Little, aka the sky is falling story that will delight children. The names throughout the book are rhyming: Henny Penny, Turkey Lurkey, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, etc. Henny Penny gets hit in the head by an acorn and thinks the sky is falling. She tells everyone she meets. Eventually, they come across Foxy Loxy who tricks all of the characters and feasts on them.

Evaluation:
The simple repetition and rhyming scheme of the names is helpful for students. Although the ending is sad and may be a bit much for some students.

Teaching Ideas:
The moral of this story is to see the truth for yourself, not believe what others say without investing. A teaching idea for this would be the rhymes. Breaking apart the ending that each word has in common.

[Ben Telling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here's a book probably 50% of the people in the political world need to read and re-read. Forget history and philosophy, political science and law school - you have to have the basics to progress. Fear mongering and a constant state of panic are quickly eroding what was once the greatest lifestyle in the world - it's gotten so bad in Canada 30% of immigrants actually go back to a better life in a "developing country" a term I use extremely loosely. Living in a constant state of panic hasn't just ruined most people's mental health, it's led to terrible "protective" policies that have encourages more violence, financial ruin, and drug addiction.

People need to get it together! Just like Henny Penny does eventually.

[Tiffany Boutain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Henny Penny is a foolish hen who worries a lot. One day, when something falls and hits Henny Penny on the head, she thinks that the sky is falling and she must tell the king. However, the sky really isn’t falling, and she makes a big mistake on her way to see the king. This book supports social-emotional development and demonstrates a situation where “Henny Penny” has to manage her feelings. This book is super cute and the children were able to understand that it was just an acorn that hit Henny Penny and that he was really overreacting that the sky was falling which we were then able to connect to how they manage their feelings if they overreacted about something.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Challenges: Reading Goal Posts/Reading Your Lifetime - Children's books (1950s and 1960s). From an old folk fable that teaches us that group think, without question or thought, can be devastating and deadly in its paranoid hysteria. A story with many titles and permutations, known as 'Chicken Little' in the US, and from which the phrase 'the sky is falling' came into the popular mind. Paul Galdone, an industrial designer by career, shows a light hand with bright colors recognizable in many other children's illustrations such as 'The Little Red Hen' and 'The Three Little Kittens'. This 2013 edition is of his 1968 adaptation of a story made popular in 1950.

[Hannah Ford · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Silly Henny Penny", as my preschooler would say, feels an acorn drop on her head and sets off--with some friends--to tell the king that the sky is falling. But alas, a sneaky fox gets in their way . . .

We have been thoroughly enjoying Paul Galdone's folk tale retellings, and Henny Penny is no exception. The rhyming names are delightful (and a primary reason my daughter keeps reaching for it!). We are, in some instances, so used to sugarcoated reality that endings like this one shock us in children's books. But even for my rather sensitive three year old, it has not been a problem at all--of course the fox would eat them for that's what foxes do!