Waiting: A Gentle Story About Patience and Imagination for Children (Ages 4–8)

Such a wonderful, calm book for young kids. It teaches patience and imagination in a soft, easy to understand way that holds their attention. The illustrations are lovely, and it has quickly become a favorite bedtime story in our home. Highly recommend!

Beautiful illustrations, sweet story. Not overly wordy which is great for my littles at this stage in their listening ability.

When I first picked up my copy of the nationally acclaimed book Waiting, I wasn't sure what to expect. Prepare to enter into Henkey's world; this golden egg hatched from a stellar production team and an all-star cast. Pig, Bear, Dog, Rabbit, and Owl; this motley crew will give you glimpse into the secret lives of stuffed animals and toys left to their own devices by a windowsill. Nominated for a Golden Globe in 2014 for her performance in National Geographic's "Owls, who gives a hoot?", Owl's performance in "Waiting" left me breathless; she manages to capture the feeling bestowed by the inexorable arrival of the moon each night, which is indeed a lunar beauty, yet also imperfect, pocked and marred, an allegory to Owl's psyche. The consternation on Pig's face as she waits for rain embodies the unease of an uncertain future. Dog represents patience and tolerance; unrelenting, he prepares for the brutal, yet inevitable winter. Bear; he represents adaptation. As the winds of change ebb and flow, he wields his trusty kite; it is both his shield and armament. While mastering the forces which dominate his environment, his rise, and ultimate fall, remind us all that while we may conform to nature's tenets, we are truly slave to their fickle whims. Rabbit represents virtue; his mind is clear, his heart, pure. Unclouded by the wants and the desires of the others, Rabbit serves to illustrate what often evades each and every one of us; when one abandons worldly desires, true peace is discovered. She waits for nothing; she waits for everything. The novella climaxes as Elephant, an effigy of dark romanticism, spends fleeting moments conspiring with the group. Elephant's demise represents the rejection of outsiders. I challenge you to examine both your own heart, of those of the characters; do you see yourself, slowly, inch by inch, urging, compelling, Elephant towards the edge? Are we no different than the characters in the book, flawed? Sit down before you begin; Waiting takes you on a journey you'll never forget, and have you yearning for more.

I love Kevin Henkes’s artwork. Be sure to also read _Little White Rabbit_ and _Old Bear_. This is a simple story with a great message, that you never know what unexpected things you might see or experience while you are “ just waiting.” I almost gave 5 stars bc I’d like to give a 4.8 — I wish that the ceramic elephant didn’t break and I find the sentence accompanying this to be unsatisfying. If Henkes wanted to point out that not all of what you see and experience will be happy, it seems this could have been done in a different way. Still, the book is gorgeous and the story is so calming. We’ve had this for years and my 7-yr-old son still enjoys it.

We recently visited our 3 1/2 year old granddaughter and I brought this book along as a gift to her. From the first moment I read it to her she was quite taken as I was too. We read it every day together for a week and each time noticed the subtle facial expressions and body placements of the waiting crew. There is so much in these words and pictures and we were especially fond of the page with the storm out the window and the expression on the pigs face. We laugher and loved this book so much I can't express how touching this book became to my granddaughter and I. After the second night she took turns reading it to gramma and papa, by looking at each page and remembering all the words. She also learned a new word in this book and we were so surprised that she even remembered it - Particular! I am going to get another copy to have at our house for when she visits. The drawings are beautiful, such a subtle, quiet treasure.

This book is beautifully illustrated, and so sweet--it's the story of the toys on a child's shelf, with each of the toys waiting for something. For one it's the moon, for another it's the rain. It reinforces vocabulary without being over the top. It keeps my toddler's interest. Best of all: there is no subtle (or not so subtle) pressure for bedtime. I think it's the only book we own where the main character isn't going to sleep at the end of the book! How refreshing. I will be buying this book as gifts for other parents--that's how much I like it.

We read this as a bedtime story to my then 2 yr old son. The lyricism and imagery made it one of his favorites. Truth be told, it became one of mine too! There are books you will read to your kids 100 times because they like it -and you’ll do it without hesitation because you love them and that’s what parents do, but seldom will you also take some sort of genuine joy from story itself. This is one of those books. A simple, yet truly magical tale. I recommend this book to everyone with small children.

I enjoyed the being of the book, making connections to other texts about being happy, including my most recent study of mindfulness. The appearance of the final character was an unexpected twist and I'm not sure what to think of it. Kinda weird.

Liked this book......and so did my grandchildren. And since we don't see them often, we can read it again, and again, or, as time passes have them read it to us.....Good read!

Beautiful children picture book. A story simple yet powerful. Haunting illustrations

Sweet story and beautiful artwork. The Grandchildren and I loved it.

Mein Sohn (3) liebt dieses Buch, ich muss es seit Tagen abends vorm Schlafen gehen vorlesen. Sehr schöne Zeichnungen.

We first became fans of Kevin Henkes with the wonderful "Old Bear". Since then we've tried "Kitten's First Full Moon" and now "Waiting". One of the nice things is that while they are all beautifully illustrated, they do not look the same. They do all have a peaceful undercurrent, a sense of wonder. "Waiting" is illustrated in a pastel palette, it's relaxing to look at and to read. There are plenty of details for the observant child to enjoy. My kids like it, and bring it to me to read to them regularly.