Henry and Mudge and the Careful Cousin

Henry and Mudge #13

by Cynthia Rylant, Suçie Stevenson

In the 13th book in the Henry and Mudge series, Henry and his big dog Mudge can't wait for Cousin Annie to visit. But when Annie arrives, she thinks Henry's fish tank smells and does not like dog kisses. How can you have fun with a cousin like that? Henry and Mudge find a way!

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Family, Fiction, Animals, Friendship, Dogs

48 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

An author of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry for children and young adults as well as an author and author/illustrator of picture books for children, Cynthia Rylant is recognized as a gifted writer who has contributed memorably to several genres of juvenile literature. A prolific author who often bases her works on her own background, especially on her childhood in the West Virginia mountains, she is the creator of contemporary novels and historical fiction for young adults, middle-grade fiction and fantasy, lyrical prose poems, beginning readers, collections of short stories, volumes of poetry and verse, books of prayers and blessings, two autobiographies, and a biography of three well-known children's writers; several volumes of the author's fiction and picture books are published in series, including the popular "Henry and Mudge" easy readers about a small boy and his very large dog.

Rylant is perhaps most well known as a novelist. Characteristically, she portrays introspective, compassionate young people who live in rural settings or in small towns and who tend to be set apart from their peers.

from bookrags.com

Reviews

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not like this book because I do not like cousins. I also did not like this book because this book had a cousin in it.

[Mila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever had a friend or cousin who’s too pretty-princess-like, but who actually turns out to like some of the things that you like to do?

Well, this book has a story about that.

In this book, Henry and his dog Mudge were waiting for his cousin to arrive. Henry has never met his cousin. Her name is Annie, said Henry to his big dog Mudge.

What kept me turning the pages was Henry could not believe this was his cousin. Annie has shiny shoes, and a bow in her hair, and a frilly dress.

Uh-oh, Henry thought.

How can Annie, Henry, and Henry’s dog Mudge get along with Mudge drooling?

[Lagobond · Rating 3 out of 5]

A sweet little story about making friends with others despite our differences. This series is centered on the adventures of Henry and his big, slobbery dog Mudge. Various other characters appear in loosely related stories. The books are numbered here on GR, but you can pick up any one of them out of sequence and follow along just fine.

This is a low-conflict, low-complexity universe for beginning readers to explore on their own. Easy-to-read large print allows readers to trace letters with their finger as they go. Longer sentences are separated into multiple lines, to aid with reading comprehension. I personally find these stories a little bland (in a blissful, innocent way), but that can be a good thing depending on the child's personality and reading preferences.

[Ali Book&Seaglasshunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Henry’s cousin Annie comes for a visit. She is aghast at Henry’s messy room, messy play, and messy dog. Henry is nervous and worried about what his cousin thinks. But then the two find something they can enjoy together.

I love all of the Henry and Mudge books. They have interesting language and varied sentence structure, and the plots are relatable to the target audience, interesting and engaging. These are great books for young readers to read on their own, or to read together.

[Le Maistre Chat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my 2-year-old daughter's favorites.
There was character development of Henry's family in the earliest books (including Aunt Sally in "Under the Yellow Moon"). Then there wasn't for awhile. Here we have a return to form with Annie, the cousin who lives so far away that Henry's never met her. She develops over the course of this story, appears in several later books, and even got a 13-volume spinoff once Rylant gave her a pet, Snowball the bunny.

[Tayler Hensley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dog eating fudge cookies...please don't ever feed a dog chocolate. Pictures looked like chocolate fudge cookies so this gets less stars. Even my 5 and 4 year old cousins I read this to said not to give dogs chocolate. Other than that they liked the book.

[Danielle Mootz · Rating 4 out of 5]

We loved this one!

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henry is nervous about his careful cousin judging his mess, or disliking him for it. She loosens up throughout the visit, when he finds something that they both can enjoy.

[The Book Box]

Mom and I read this the other night.

[Melissa Namba · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this because the Careful Cousin is a girl in a frilly dress. I love that she gets dirty and plays with Henry and Mudge. Perfect for my nieces.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Henry and Mudge get used to Annie who is very careful and clean and fancy. Turns out that Annie is super great at Frisbee.

[Stephen Chase · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOL, funny!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[WinterBat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Convenient in that they find something to come together on without actual conflict, but it’s sweet that the kids are so conscientious and considerate of the other

[Noah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Henry and Mudge are such good books.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henry needs to clean his room. This book was kind of disgusting.

[Suzanne Lorraine Kunz Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love how Henry overcomes some prejudice to discover a friend.

[Taylor Teague · Rating 1 out of 5]

His cousin is lame

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars
I remember this specific book in the Henry and Mudge series from when I read it as a child.

[Chantelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son and I both thoroughly enjoyed every book in this series and were excited to find out what would happen as we started each one. Because my son was between 5-6 years old (he's an advanced reader) at the time, he easily identified with Henry and loved Mudge because (1) he desperately wanted a dog, and (2) Mudge's goofiness was endearing AND hilarious.

Read Aloud: Pre-K and Kindergarten
Introduces plot, character development, foreshadowing, and use of imagery.

Independent Reading: First or Second grade (6-7 years old). More complex sentence structure than "Mr. Putter Series" and slightly longer paragraphs. Short chapters (with clever titles), character development, humor, and an easy to follow plot will encourage all children to read.

Underlying themes of friendship, thoughtfulness, and responsibility are seamlessly weaved throughout the book. Although this is a fairly simple children's book, I found myself laughing out loud at the many adventures of Henry and Mudge.

HIGHLY Recommend!!

[Elizabeth Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rylant, Cynthia. Henry and Mudge and the Careful Cousin. Illus. Sucie Stevenson. New York: Aladdin Paperbacks, 1994. Print. In this ready-to-read book Henry and his dog Mudge are visited by their cousin. They quickly realize how different they are but as the day goes on they have fun and realize that being different is okay. Something that I think the illustrator did really well was use bright colors and pictures throughout the story. I think by doing this it makes the reader more interested in seeing what is going on throughout the story. I also think the author did a great job when it comes to the word count on the page. Since this is an early chapter book the students can get used to the increase in reading without being overwhelmed. If I were to use this book in my classroom I would do so for group reading circles and have five or so students come back, each having a copy, and take turns reading a page each out loud. The students will be able to enjoy the story and I as a teacher can help gage their proficiency in reading.

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henry's cousin Annie was coming to stay the night, the dog Mudge and he were really happy until Annie showed up. Annie was pretty and filly, she really didn't want the drooling dog all over her. She wasn't sure about Henry and his messy room either. After lunch, they played frisbee together and finally found something that Henry, Annie and Mudge enjoyed. Returning to the messy room after, Annie was no longer pretty and frilly, but she was just as dirty and Henry, Mudge or the room.

Cute story, enjoyed the difference between the first image of Annie, and the last. This is an easy book for the kids to read, it is a 2nd level reader with short chapters and short paragraphs but good sentence structure. This is a good book to introduce with quote marks for speaking lines. It also has a moral of keep at it and you can find common ground.

[midnightfaerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book my 6 yr old loved, a little old for my preschoolers. A solid reading level 2 book, this reader has a good amount of advanced vocabulary words, but not so long that it discourages a new reader. Used it for his read out loud book, which was perfect. It took about 15 mins for him to read and had just enough new vocabulary words to make it challenging. Also, it was a fun and interesting story he could get into. He liked it so much, he asked for more by this author. Great reading book!

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun book in the "Henry and Mudge" series. Henry's cousin is coming to visit and she couldn't be more different from Henry. Still they manage to find something they both enjoy and learn more about each other. It's an earlier story in the series, and we've read more books about cousin Annie recently. Our girls enjoy all of Cynthia Rylant's books.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

The introduction of Annie! When Henry's cousin Annie comes over, and first Henry thinks she is too particular and clean. But soon enough Annie is playing Frisbee, getting dirty, and eating questionable food from Henry's bedroom. A great introduction to Annie, who recurs through the series and even gets her own series.

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

the henry and mudge books actually make easy reader beginner chapter books fun...with humor infused into the very limited storyline. the girls loved this one about a neat cousin visiting very messy henry and mudge.

[Lindsay · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent series for young readers! Children fall in love with the characters Henry and Mudge and get excited to read the next book! The friendship between Henry and his dog Mudge is very clear throughout the series.

[Teresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very fun book for kids, as are all the other Henry and Mudge books. It's an easy ready, and the illustrations are great as well. A lot of kids may be able to relate to Henry as well, which always good. Overall a great book and definitely one that kids will love and enjoy.

[↜ƈɦǟռ☂ɛℓℓɛ↝ · Rating 3 out of 5]

★★★Henry and Mudge and the Careful Cousin by Cynthia Rylant
Henry and His giant dog, Mudge, can't wait for his cousin to visit. When Annie gets there she is disgusted by everything. But when she learns she great at something, her attitude towards everything changes.

[Alaina Sloo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wonderful Cynthia Rylant early reader series, much enjoyed by kids kindergarten through 2d grade. Sweet, gentle stories about the relationship between a boy and his very big dog. Many kids love them, but boys seem to gravitate toward them most.

[Tammy]

Very cute story about a cousin moving next door but is aprehensive. Henry shares Mudge to ease his cousin's fear