Henry and Mudge and the Sneaky Crackers

Henry and Mudge #16

by Cynthia Rylant, Suçie Stevenson (Illustrator)

Henry and his dog Mudge put their spy skills to the test in this Ready-to-Read adventure.

With his new spy kit and his faithful sidekick Mudge, Henry is ready to look for clues, steal secrets, and flirt with danger. One of the first things Henry and Mudge find is a coded message...could there be another spy in the neighborhood?

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

48 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1998

About the author

Cynthia Rylant is an American author, poet, and librarian whose deeply felt books for children and young adults have made her one of the most beloved voices in contemporary literature. Writing across picture books, novels, short stories, nonfiction, and poetry, she has published more than one hundred works, many of them rooted in memory, family, solitude, and the emotional landscapes of ordinary life. Her fiction often draws from her upbringing in West Virginia and reflects the textures of Appalachian life with unusual tenderness and clarity.
Raised in modest circumstances, Rylant spent much of her childhood with her grandparents in a rural setting that later became central to her imagination as a writer. Those early years, marked by hardship as well as warmth, shaped the emotional honesty and quiet resilience that define her work. She later studied English and library science, and after working as a waitress, librarian, and teacher, she began publishing books inspired by the world she had known so intimately.
Among her most acclaimed works are Missing May, which received the Newbery Medal, and A Fine White Dust, a Newbery Honor Book. She also earned Caldecott Honors for When I Was Young in the Mountains and The Relatives Came. For younger readers, she became especially well known through the enduring Henry and Mudge series, as well as other popular books and series that combine gentleness, humor, and emotional depth.
Rylant's writing is distinguished by its compassion for lonely, searching, or overlooked characters, and by its reverence for animals, nature, and small human connections. Whether writing about grief, wonder, childhood, or belonging, she brings a lyrical simplicity that resonates across generations. Her books continue to offer comfort, recognition, and beauty to readers of all ages. She remains a singular literary presence in children's literature and beyond today.

Reviews

[J9]

The more Henry and Mudge books we read, the more my 5 yr old son loves them. There are good solid reading level 2 books, so he can read them to me out loud or to himself and discuss later. Today I really enjoyed watching him read to himself and smiling and laughing at certain parts when I'm pretty sure he didn't know he was doing it. He loves secret decoder type stuff. It's great to see a new reader enjoying books as much as you do as well. So this is high on our list of favorites and we look forward to more Henry and Mudge books.

[Ali Book&Seaglasshunter]

Henry and Mudge case their neighborhood as spy’s, and Henry manages to crack a secret code leading to a new friendship. A cute childhood story with all the benefits of the rest of the Henry and Mudge books-engaging storyline and characters, great word choice and varied sentence structure, complex enough to be interesting but not overwhelming. Maybe parents will want to address the part where Henry meets up with the stranger code writer, but I don’t think it was a very big deal.

[Christina]

This is a book my three year old picked up and chose to start reading out loud. She brings it to me and asks for a read aloud. I highly recommend this code cracking spy story for little kids. The whole series is worth reading. I especially appreciate that this title is not school centered.

[Le Maistre Chat]

Two white boys start a club called "Crackers".
I'm pretty sure my 2-year-old daughter had no idea what a spy is before asking me to read this book ten times. This is an interesting realistic fiction series because it seems kids from Henry's age to much younger can relate to it.

[Alex]

I do not like this book because I do not like spies. I enjoyed this book because I like Henry and Mudge books.

[XIS Grade 3]

Maya: I like this book because Henry and Mudge turn into super spies, and they solve the secret code.

[Sarah]

Henry gets a spy kit and cracks a code (so no the crackers aren't about food). He discovers there is another spy in his neighborhood!

[MotherofReaders]

We love the Henry and Mudge series, which is great realistic fiction that is relatable to kids of many ages. This one didn’t stand out in particular from the other great books in the series and my daughter didn’t request as many re-reads as she sometimes does, but it met the high quality standard we have come to expect from Henry and Mudge. Like the others in the series, we will check it out again in the future

[The Book Box]

Mom and I read this the other night.

[Emerson and Theodore]

This book inspired this year’s Halloween costume—a Spy!

[Checkthebook]

My students love spy pens, spy kits, spy stories.

[Elizabeth]

A friendship buds between Henry and another boy who both enjoy "spying". Perfect.

[WinterBat]

Captures a child’s excitement about being a spy or solving mysteries. Fun to see the different approaches Henry and Mudge take

[Chelsea]

My 6 year old read this to me. The first time he's read early chapter books! It was cute and fun! I think we need to start at book 1 now.

[Kelly Chester]

What a great book

[Trish]

Delightful! Recommended for the Logos Library for beginner readers.

[Kelsey]

I didn’t find this story too interesting.

[PumpkinParker]

It's a quick, simple read but it gets points for nostalgia — I reread it all the time as a kid :) It made me want to be a spy so bad lol

[Emma]

I remember when they used to put codes with special glasses in cereal boxes.

[TJE]

cute story about Henry meeting a new friend

[Chantelle]

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!!

[Chak]

As with the Mr. Putter & Tabby Books (also by Cynthia Rylant), I don't believe there are enough of these books in the series! My son devours them. Henry and his big, drooly dog Mudge find themselves in yet another *hilarious* situation! Really, that's all you need to know. When your child is ready for chapter books, this is a good place to start.

I would suggest you get these out of the library, because they will pile up quite quickly as you go through them. I want to support Cynthia Rylant and make sure she keeps writing more and more books, but I just can't fill up my apartment that much. Cynthia, if you're reading this, can I just send you a check directly?

Recommended for ages 4-6.

[Dolly]

This book also came with a CD of the story, and our girls listened to it twice, back to back. It was an interesting story and I like to have audio books available for our girls when we are in the car. We've read many of the books in this series and will look for more.

January 2017 update: I couldn't remember if I'd read this one before, so I picked it up at our local library to listen to with a six-year-old boy and his mom during a car trip. It's a short story, but very entertaining.

[Aaron Alexander]

This is a great book for first or second grade students to read. I always love all of the Henry and Mudge books growing up and still think that they are excellent for students to read. With this particular book, you could do an class activity in which you hide various clues around the room. Each clue will have a riddle or question relating to the subject matter you are teaching for this lesson. You can make it into a sort of spy game like in the book with all the clues leading to a final prize.

[Kayla]

This was a good read that I think my students would enjoy one day as well. This book was fun and exciting to read. I think the length is perfect for students who are starting to read chapter books. It's long enough that they are challenged but short enough that they don't get bored with the story.
I think the students would enjoy the mystery in this story. I could see them trying to figure out if their was a spy as they read along in the book.

[Kelly Powell]

This story was an entertaining read because I remember when I had my own spy kit and my best friend would write me spy codes. This story was one that many can relate to about finding a friend in someone who shares an interest. As far as transitional chapter books go I felt the story to be lacking making the read too easy. With some greater detail I fell the story could have became great making me want to purchase my own copy.

[Little Miss and the Legomeister]

The Henry and Mudge books are so good. Rylant really helps us see things from Henry's perspective and brings their world alive. The writing -combined with the pictures- really works well to portray a full message while keeping the vocabulary and length appropriate for early readers.

This one was really cute; Henry gets a spy kit and they play spy.

[Libby]

Another great Henry and Mudge installment--I included this one because my six-year-old has become quite taken with the idea of a spy kit. Also, all three kids thought it was funny that the spy club became known as the "Crackers" (for cracking codes), but that the name also fit because of Mudge's love of the crackers that you eat.

[Jessica]

A mystery in the Henry and Mudge series! Henry gets a spy kit, and Mudge wears the hat. Henry finds a code on a piece of paper. I enjoy the page that shows all the things in their home that Mudge has cracked. Henry cracks the code and leaves messages until he finally meets the other boy who is a spy and his dog. Such a fun book :)

[Jamie]

Very cute book. Never heard of Henry and Mudge books but the boy I watch had heard of them and said they're "famous". I thought this one was great and very cute. Divided up into mini-sections or chapters to get kids used to chapter books.