Henry Hikes to Fitchburg

This D.B. Johnson book depicting Henry David Thoreau's life through the life of Henry, the bear, so clearly shows the benefits of a simple lifestyle. While this is arguably not nonfiction, teachers can use this story as a way to help students, even in high school, understand what Thoreau and the Transcendentalists lives were like. Johnson presents two different routes to Fitchburg, allowing the reader to view images and side by side descriptions of the two different journeys. While there is not one "right" way, and Henry's friend arrives to Fitchburg first, the last line, "I stopped for blueberries" encompasses Henry's adventure. The common phrase "It's not where you're going, it's how you get there" may help students think about the show more way they live their lives and what they may sometimes miss by rushing. I would possibly use this as a mentor text in an English classroom to introduce the Transcendentalist movement and Henry David Thoreau. show less

Inspired by a passage from Henry David Thoreau's WALDEN, this wonderfully appealing story follows two friends who have very different approaches to life. When the two agree to meet one evening in Fitchburg, which is thirty miles away, each decides to get there in his own way and have surprisingly different days.

Lovely illustrations and really good story based on Henry David Thoreau's philosophy. Henry and a friend decide to see who can get to Fitchburg first, by walking or by earning the money for a train ticket. An interesting story of time vs. money. The story seems to tip the hat toward Henry and his walk through the woods, since he had some blackberries to share with his friend (who was empty handed) at the end of the trip. It would be an interesting class discussion to see who sided with Henry's friend, though, who got money for doing different tasks, saving up for a trip he wanted to take, one with a competitive challenge (who will get there first?) to it.

The overall idea, illustrating Thoreau's point to his friend that going someplace on foot was more fulfilling than earning money to go there by train, is interesting. Most of the details, however, will be well over the audience's heads, whether it be the names of 19th-century American thinkers and authors, or the simple geography of greater Boston. If I were a greater fan of Johnson's art style or of the Transcendentalists, I might feel more enthusiastic, but I am not.

A delightfully illustrated, dramatized narrative of Henry Thoreau's walking to a city versus a friend's working to pay for a train ride there. A useful starting point for discussions with children regarding their interaction with and care for the natural environment, particularly regarding earning a living.

In Henry Hikes to Fitchburg, a bear named Henry tells his friend that walking is the fastest way to get to Fitchburg while his friend insists that the train is faster. As Henry goes on his adventure, his friend spends all day working to save up money for the train ticket. Even though his friend was right in the end, Henry had more fun. This can be used to examine the idea that "it's the Journey, not the Destination". Children can also compare the two bears and what they were doing throughout the day, and engage in a discussion of how they go from place to place.

Henry, a bear based on Thoreau, makes a deal with his friend: see who makes it to Fitchburg first, Henry by walking or his friend by earning train fare. Johnson writes and illustrates a chapter of Thoreau's life with sweetness and humor. His book makes me want to go hiking. It would be interesting to read the book to kids and ask them which method they would choose.