Karen Leggett (Children's Literature)
What makes a house a home? Room to dance? Room to read? Lots of rooms? Henry David Thoreau needed only one small cabin, which he built himself for $28.12 minus1/2, by his own accounting according to D.B. Johnson's notes at the end of this story. The cabin Thoreau built at Walden Pond is the inspiration for this story of a bear who sets out to build his own cabin in the woods. Each friend who comes to help Henry is worried that the cabin is too small, but Henry keeps promising that "It's bigger than it looks." By the time he is finished, he dances down a grand stairway to a nearby pond, reads in his library under a neighboring tree and stretches out of his window into a dining room in the garden. His self-confidence in pursuing his goal and his imaginative ways of expanding the notion of home are admirable, although wearing the tiny cabin to stay dry in the rain on the last page seems out of keeping with the creative practicality of both Henry the philosopher and Henry the bear. Without being didactic, the story provides ample opportunity to initiate discussions of conformity, peer pressure, independence and even solitude. The light colored illustrations in pencil and cut paper appear chopped like wood, giving each page a constructed look much like the cabin itself. 2002, Houghton Mifflin, $15.00. Ages 4 to 8.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, February 15, 2002 (Vol. 70, No. 4))
In an effective retelling of Henry David Thoreau's cabin-building project, Johnson relates with light-hearted humor how Henry builds a cabin barely big enough for himself. As he builds, he is successively questioned by friends about whether it is large enough to eat in, to read in, and to dance in. Each time he replies, "It's bigger [or brighter] than it looks." Each response incorporates natural surroundings and expands his space since he anticipates eating in his bean patch, reading in a sunny spot beside his cabin, and dancing in the front yard. The rhythm of the story is maintained with construction work intermittently detailed between his friends' visits and queries. In the final scene, Henry barely fits in his cabin as he attempts to shelter himself from the rain. "This is just the house I wear when it's raining." Children will find this moment amusing, though younger, more literal readers may wonder as Henry "wears" his small shelter with his limbs sticking out of the windows and floor. Faceted forms are built of angular shapes and warm, natural colors; multiple perspectives fill the scenes, creating a dynamism that energizes the whole. Those who enjoyed Johnson's Henry Hikes to Fitchburg (2000) will delight in the familiar artistic style and reverence for his inspiration as Johnson again successfully conveys Thoreau's love of nature and his desire to immerse himself in the outdoors. The author quotes Thoreau's anecdote in his endnote and includes details about the building of his cabin that provided shelter for his two-year stay at Walden Pond. Readers will be waiting for more of Henry. 2002, Houghton Mifflin, $15.00. Category: Picture book. Ages 4 to 8. © 2002 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Janice M. Del Negro (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, May 2002 (Vol. 55, No. 9))
This sequel to Johnson’s first picture-book foray into the life of Henry David Thoreau (Henry Hikes to Fitchburg, BCCB 7/00) follows Henry while he builds his new cabin. Henry gets by with a little help from his friends Alcott, Emerson, and Miss Lydia (all anthropomorphized bears), who drop in both to help and to criticize the size of Henry’s new house. “It’s bigger than it looks,” replies Henry, and he proves it by showing how he will use his bean patch as a dining room, a sunny outdoor spot as a library, a path down to the pond as a ballroom. Though young listeners will still miss most of the historical implications, this title has somewhat more narrative cohesion than the first book; Henry has a concrete plan, the cabin is a concrete result, and the chronology of events is easier to follow because the point of view is more consistent. Colored pencil and paint illustrations are rendered in a palette of varied verdancy; the cubist-style figures are set in busy landscapes that are often compositionally confused and muddy-toned. A concluding note “About Henry’s Cabin” includes brief biographical information on Thoreau and a kid-friendly price list for the supplies he used to build his cabin. Review Code: Ad -- Additional book of acceptable quality for collections needing more material in the area. (c) Copyright 2002, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 2002, Houghton, 32p, $15.00. Ages 5-8 yrs.