Vom Hühnchen, das goldene Eier legen wollte. Ein Bilderbuch.

by Hanna Johansen, Käthi Bhend

The persistence of Henrietta, one of 3,333 chickens on a chicken farm, leads to a better life for them all.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fantasy, International

62 pages, Paperback

First published September 14, 1999

About the author

Hanna Johansen, eigentlich Hanna Margarete Meyer, ist eine Schweizer Schriftstellerin.

Hanna Johansen studierte nach dem Besuch des Gymnasiums Altphilologie, Germanistik und Pädagogik an den Universitäten in Marburg und Göttingen. Von 1967 bis 1969 lebte sie in Ithaca, im amerikanischen Bundesstaat New York. 1972 zog sie mit ihrem damaligen Ehemann, dem Schriftsteller Adolf Muschg, nach Kilchberg bei Zürich, wo sie seitdem ansässig ist.

Hanna Johansen begann ihre literarische Laufbahn als Übersetzerin zeitgenössischer amerikanischer Avantgarde-Autoren sowie, angeregt durch ihren eigenen Nachwuchs, als Verfasserin von Geschichten für Kinder. 1978 erschien ihr Romandebüt. Die Autorin ist Mitglied des PEN-Zentrums der Schweiz und korrespondierendes Mitglied der Deutschen Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung in Darmstadt.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked this book well enough. I liked Henrietta's determination, and her refusal to not even bother to try. I liked the story better when I read it aloud to the kids than I did when I read it to myself the first time through. I think actually hearing Henrietta's determination made the story light up more. The illustrations were very well done, too.

BUT... my niece and nephew couldn't have cared less about this book. I mean, really could not have cared less. My niece, who is older, did not grasp the point of this story at all, and when I was done reading it, that was it. She wasn't even a little bit interested in discussing it. When I asked her what she thought of it, her exact response was, "I don't know, hey, Mama, do you have any gum?"

At least my niece suffered me politely and listened as I read. My nephew, on the other hand, literally sang throughout the entire story. And just in case I wasn't grasping his subtle hint to shut up, his singing grew louder and louder the longer I read. It was a real oratorical/operatic battle that was raging between the two of us!

So, Henrietta and the Golden Eggs? I guess I shouldn't have even bothered to try. But I hope you do.

[Guilherme Semionato · Rating 2 out of 5]

Open Library

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

MILDRED BATCHELDER HONOR BOOK (2003)

Format: Small picture book
Age level: Elementary
Protagonist: Henrietta, a young chicken
First published in Switzerland

Review:
Henrietta is a young chicken who lives in a chicken house filled with "three thousand three hundred and thirty-three chickens." Because it's so crowded, the chickens are not healthy or happy. Henrietta is too small to lay eggs yet, but she declares that when she does, she will lay golden eggs. In the meantime, Henrietta works on scratching a hole to allow her freedom from the chicken house. Each time she leaves the coop, there is a new skill she wants to learn. First it is singing, then swimming, and then flying. Finally, it comes time for Henrietta to lay her egg.

This was a very fun book with lots of repetition. Younger children will enjoy the strange number 3,333 chickens, which is referred to several times. They will also enjoy Henrietta's attempts at singing, swimming, and flying. Each of her proclamations garner the same response from her fellow chickens, resulting in a short, fun, repetitive dialogue.

The pictures are black and white. They are very detailed and quite amusing. The illustrator achieves a three-dimensional aspect by framing the pictures with a rectangular border but then having parts of the picture "escape" the border.

Henrietta and the Golden Eggs could be shared as part of a folktale unit, along with The Goose that Laid the Golden Eggs. It could also be used to talk about peer pressure. Although the story is short, I see similarities between it and Jerry Spinelli's Stargirl.

[Callie Reichenbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought Henrietta and the Golden Eggs was a great children's books. It is about a chicken, Henrietta, who lives in a chicken house filled with "three thousand three hundred and thirty-three chickens." Henrietta is too small to lay eggs yet, but she declares that when she does, she will lay golden eggs. In the meantime, Henrietta works on scratching a hole to escape the chicken coop. Each time she leaves the coop, she leaves to do something new. First it is singing, then swimming, and then flying. Each time, all the other big chickens laugh at her and say "don't even bother trying" but Henrietta does it anyway, and eventually the big chicken follow her to wherever she goes. Finally, it comes time for Henrietta to lay her egg. Everyone gathers around to see if she has laid these golden eggs she had proclaimed she would lay, just as she had done with all the other tasks. She lays a brown egg and the other chickens say "look that egg isn't golden after all" and Henrietta says "did you really believe a chicken could lay golden eggs?" I thought the book was enjoyable, especially for children. It was written with imagery to the story and had repetition and had a good use of imagination.

The illustrations looked like pencil sketches. They were black and white with some dark yellow mixed in. I thought they were a good representation of the text.

This book was originally published in Germany. In 2002 it was translated and published in the United States, classifying it as an international book. I think it was a good books, and I think international books are good to spread from culture to culture.

[Peacegal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fantastic, pen-and-ink illustrations are a feature of this clever and humane little book. Henrietta is one of 3,333 chickens who call a factory egg farm warehouse home. Most of the chickens just endure the trod-upon toes and coughing from the bad air, but Henrietta is different. She has big plans for herself, and one of them is to lay a golden egg! But in order to make her mark on the world, she first must escape her unpleasant confines. She pecks a hole in the wall that enables each of those 3,333 hens to squeeze outside, one-by-one.

The farm manager is so upset that he demands every chicken captured and returned to the shed. After Henrietta leads them to escape twice more, the farmer finally learns the wisdom in listening to what the animals themselves want, and goes into the business of free-range eggs.

I believe this is the first time I’ve seen a factory chicken shed illustrated in a children’s book, and the artist does a fine job of conveying its vastness. The wonder of the outside world, in sharp contrast to the shed, is also illustrated brilliantly. Henrietta is a good way to introduce the concepts of factory farming and free-range farming, in a non-upsetting way youngsters can understand.

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful, evocative title, "Henrietta and the Golden Eggs"!

As the story unfolds, I fall in love with little Henrietta, who has decided to learn how to sing. Wow! That turns out to be the start of something wonderful.

The ending, not that I'll add a spoiler... Take it from me, that ending is just lovely.

Definitely, this is a FIVE STAR book. Inspiring!

Caution: The realism, describing what life is like where the birds are cooped up? This could frighten sensitive youngsters -- or humans of any age. Know your readers before you choose this particular story for them.

[Cynthia Egbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually really loved this fable. I loved how Henrietta never quit trying to improve herself and yet she was obviously choosing to define success on her own terms and I find that wonderful. And she proved herself to be a natural leader in that she showed the way without being in any way demanding that others think exactly like she does. I am glad I got my Godine catalog and that this one was on sale! I hope to share it with my grandkids one day.

[tk · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read it before reading it to our four-year-old and decided I didn't want to fight off the barrage of questions sure to landslide at this stage about the unhealthy living quarters since, while we focus on organic and free-range eating, I don't know too much about chickens. Will see pick it up at a later date perhaps.

[Abby Rowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is based on a Germany folk tale which is a good story about a very determined hen who wants to lay golden eggs. This book is a good children's story however, may be more appropriate for 1st-2nd graders who may be able to understand abstract thought better than preschoolers.

[Jeani · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title of this book doesn't really make sense for the story, but the story is pretty great!

[Gordon · Rating 3 out of 5]

With a story that rivals Chicken Run, Hanna Johansen tells us of Henrietta, a chicken on a poultry farm who dreams big in Henrietta and the Golden Eggs. She believes that one day, she'll lay golden eggs. In the meantime, she's frequently making a run for it and taking along her sister hens. As a consequence of Henrietta's frequent escapes, the owner-operators of the chicken farm adopt humane improvements that make life so much better for the hens. With astounding pen-and-ink drawings by Käthi Bhend that are highly energetic and chaotic, this tiny book is a great deal of fun.

[Salsabrarian]

Translated by John Barrett: Booktalk: You live in a big house. It may be big but it's crowded with everyone living there and you only have room enough for your own two feet. There are lots of pushing and shoving going on and you're losing your feathers because you keep getting pecked at. Your name is Henrietta, you are one of 3,333 chickens on the farm, you live in a chicken coop that stinks of chicken droppings and fortified chicken feed and you're not going to take it anymore! So one day you peck and scratch in the chicken coop, peck and scratch, peck and scratch until you make a hole big enough for you to get through, and when you do, you know you're never gonna be cooped up in no stinkin' chicken house anymore!

[Jenielle Haynes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is general fiction and it has very imaginative pictures to help tell the story. This is a funny and interesting story. Henrietta is a chicken with big dreams of doing more than a chicken should. She tries everything and even though the “Big Chickens” laugh at her she does not stop of feel like she can’t. Henrietta begins wanting to sing, then swim, and wanting to lay a golden egg. She shows that she has imagination and can do anything she puts her mind to. This book is for Kindergarten through the 2nd Grade.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super gorgeous illustrations and fabulous text with thrice repeating refrains and patterns that evoke a fairy tale without the book actually being one. Now I need to hunt out Kathi Bhend and buy one of the illustrations :-)

[Elizabeth Ferry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute picture book about the joys of free range chickens. Nice illustrations.

[jenna Hudrlik · Rating 5 out of 5]

a wonderful and fabulous book. great modern fairy tale - one we should all pay attention to.

[Eugenia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Makes me think of Chicken Run...

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

For a book with a (not even veiled) political agenda, this is really cool. Go, Henrietta!

[Kaitlyn Kinslow · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a cute book! I liked how the author put so much imagination and determination in a hen!

[Kristy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little picture book - Repetition, animal-friendly & encourages free range chickens!