A boy from Racine, a life in pictures

Kevin Henkes grew up in the 1960s in a working-class neighborhood in Racine, Wisconsin, with his three brothers, his sister, and his parents. “There were people of all ages in my neighborhood . . . and many children.” As a boy he drew more than anything. He also read, rode his bike, and played outside a lot.

His family didn’t own many books, but they went to the public library regularly. “This was one of my favorite family activities, and I’m certain it played a role in my becoming a writer and illustrator.”

“I grew up desperately wanting to be an artist. That desire was a huge part of my identity for as far back as I can remember. It wasn’t until I was in high school that writing became as important to me.”

During his junior year of high school, an English teacher who encouraged him as a writer said, “I wouldn’t be surprised if I saw your name on a book one day.” Kevin decided that year to write and illustrate children’s books for a career. “The power of these words was enormous. I’ll never forget them. Or her.”

Kevin’s first picture book, All Alone, was published in 1981. His early books had realistically rendered humans as protagonists. As his stories became more humorous, he thought he could better match his texts by drawing more loosely — and using animals.

Bailey Goes Camping was his first book with animals — Bailey and his family are rabbits. For his next book, A Weekend with Wendell, he made sketches of a dog, a cat, an elephant, and a mouse — and chose the mouse. The rest of the mouse family followed.

“The words always come first for me. I try to perfect them before I draw anything.” Kevin works on stories in longhand on lined notebook paper, rewriting several times before typing a clean copy on a typewriter — the one that belonged to his wife when she was a teenager.

Illustrations begin with sketches for the whole book, then finished pencil drawings, then inking. “At this point, I make several copies of each ink drawing so that I can test different colors before I finally paint each piece.”

Kevin works in the remodeled attic on the third floor of his family’s home in Madison, Wisconsin. “It is a large room filled with books. From the windows I have a great view of our yard. When I’m working, I feel as if I’m up in the trees.”

Kevin received the Caldecott Medal for Kitten’s First Full Moon; Caldecott Honors for Waiting and Owen; two Newbery Honors — for Olive’s Ocean and The Year of Billy Miller; and Geisel Honors for Waiting and Penny and Her Marble. In January 2020, the American Library Association named him the winner of the Children’s Literature Legacy Award for his lasting contribution to literature for children.

Kevin Henkes lives with his family in Madison, Wisconsin. His favorite book is always the next one — “because I always think that the next one will be perfect, my best.”