Hands Off, Harry! (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Hands Off, Harry! Hope Morrison Wells, Rosemary. Hands Off, Harry!; written and illus. by Rosemary Wells. Tegen/HarperCollins, 2011. 40p. (Kindergators) ISBN 978-0-06-192112-4 $14.99 Ad 4–7 yrs In Miss Harmony’s kindergarten classroom, the Kindergators (alligators in kindergarten, of course) work together to help one other when something goes wrong. That is, except for troublemaker Harry, who bumps into his classmates during Friendly Circle, makes Miracle spill her glue, and tackles Nigel during yoga. Spending time in the thinking chair doesn’t reform Harry, who doesn’t even apologize with sincerity (“‘He doesn’t mean it!’ said Babette. ‘He’s not using an I’m sorry voice’”). Fortunately, Babette comes up with the perfect solution to Harry’s space issues: she borrows an inflatable tube from the gym which Harry wears around his middle the rest of the day as a reminder to leave some space between him and other people. While clearly intended for classroom use and discussion, this first installment in the new Kindergators series is didactic to the hilt; Miss Harmony is the perfect teacher, with a calm approach to even the most trying moments, and her measured speech and unruffled composure are clearly presented as an ideal for educators sharing this book with kids. Similarly, the students’ day is framed by best practices for peaceful classrooms, with group meetings, redirection, and reflection. The story consequently reads more like a case study for creating peaceful classrooms than a storybook, which is likely to be somewhat off-putting to listeners. There is, however, plenty of functionality to the text, particularly for those elementary classrooms needing a focused lesson on personal-space issues. Wells combines her usual sturdily whimsical illustrative style with collage elements, from an array of patterned fabric to the green, scaly surface (raised on the cover) of the ’gators themselves. Order this more for its usefulness than its aesthetic and keep an eye out for other specific classroom issues in future titles. A note on “Creating Classroom Harmony” is appended. Copyright © 2011 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois