Judith Henderson – författare

When a hungry alligator moves to their town, the residents want him out . . . until they get to know him (and learn what he’s actually hungry for!). A timely tale about empathy, acceptance and a community’s response to injustice.

Though he’s scared at first, a boy who encounters an alligator in the woods soon realizes that all the alligator wants is companionship — and leftovers — and the two become good friends. But the mayor of the boy’s town simply won’t allow it. He even makes an official proclamation, ”NO ALLIGATORS! Blah, blah, blah.“ The townspeople agree with the mayor. At first. But once they see how kind and helpful the alligator is (and how nice it is to have someone to eat all their leftovers!), they decide the alligator should be allowed to stay. They help the alligator avoid the mayor, for a while. But it’s becoming harder to find a place for him to hide. Can they all come together and find a way to keep the alligator in their town?

Judith Henderson’s funny, whimsical and heartwarming picture book tale offers a playful way to engage children with issues of injustice and civil disobedience. In this timely story, a boy and then an entire community move beyond their fear of the ”other“ and respond with acceptance; then they movingly take it a step further to make change. It highlights the positive character education attributes of empathy, kindness, caring and courage. Andrea Stegmaier’s illustrations include loads of charming details that are not in the text, making them a perfect complement to the story’s warm and quirky style. This is a terrific book for lessons on communities and social justice.

The letter D is mad at Apostrofee. Apostrofee thinks she’s got it all wrong. Prepare yourself for the funniest book about punctuation that you’ll ever read. Kids will never look at grammar the same way again!

Dee has a problem with Apostrofee. Namely, he keeps stealing letters and replacing them with himself! He does it with the letter E (turning DELISH into D’LISH). And A (I AM into I’M). And all of those Os (WOULD NOT into WOULDN’T, COULD NOT into COULDN’T … you get the idea). Dee and the other letters have had enough! Though they have to admit Apostrofee does make words shorter, and without him, nobody could own anything. (The BOOK can’t be DEE’S BOOK without an apostrophe!) And the letters do kind of miss him when he’s not around … Should they forgive him, so they can all live in peace ’n’ harmony?

Judith Henderson brings a fresh and unexpected approach to the topic of grammar in this playful and humorous picture book that children will happily pick up on their own. With a limited, bright color palette, Ohara Hale’s illustrations bring loads of personality to the characters and an appealing zany energy to the pages. Besides its use for teaching punctuation and language usage, this book also provides excellent social-emotional lessons on conflict resolution, acceptance and empathy.

Come one, come all to a very special event … the grand opening of the Museum of Willa and Wade!

Willa and Wade (an ostrich and a penguin) discover something curious on their walk. The small round object is sparkly but looks very old. They’ve discovered a treasure! And it belongs in a museum. In fact, it belongs in their very own museum, which will be called the Museum of Willa and Wade (MOWW). So, how do you make a museum? Well, first they have to choose a location. A box labeled MOWW is just the thing. Next, they need to add a few more treasures. Wade’s rock, handed down for generations, and Willa’s dinosaur are perfect for rounding out the collection. Add a café and a grand opening and voilà! They’ve created the perfect museum – almost as perfect as their friendship!

Judith Henderson’s graphic-novel series for early readers is a testament to trying new things, being undeterred by setbacks and learning as you go. The two adorable flightless birds are ever curious and always optimistic as they use creative problem-solving to work their way to solutions. Through it all, their friendship is the star, as the two are always open to each other’s suggestions. Illustrations by Sara Sarhangpour add to the whimsical tone of the story and, with just a few per spread, never overwhelm young readers. This book offers excellent character-education lessons on teamwork, initiative and perseverance. It could also serve as a great discussion starter on the value of museums or on what the things we cherish represent to us.

Everyone’s favorite flightless bird friends learn a thing or two about suspicious behavior in this clever addition to the fun graphic novel series!

When best friends Willa and Wade discover that there may be spies among them, they decide to see if they can spot any in their neighborhood. Of course, they don’t want to be noticed. So they disguise themselves in belted trenchcoats, tipped fedoras and sunglasses. They make sure to act calm and casual as they nonchalantly survey the scene. And they are stealthy when interrogating suspicious-looking characters. Even so, their investigation turns up no spies. However, the rest of the neighborhood now seems to be whispering about them …

Judith Henderson delivers another amusing story about two lovable bird friends who are always trying new things and learning together. This whimsical graphic novel series for early readers promotes being curious and staying optimistic, no matter what happens. Key to their appeal is the friendship between the two birds, who always listen to and support the other’s ideas, and who thoroughly enjoy investigating the world together. Children will love being in on how obvious the pair are while trying to go undercover, and simple illustrations by Sara Sarhangpour provide visual cues that complement the story. This title is excellent for teaching critical-thinking skills and for character-education lessons on perseverance, adaptability and teamwork.