Dear Mr. Henshaw

Children’s literature once shied away from deeply emotional topics and avoided controversial subject matter. Modern authors now see the value in crafting storylines that include characters grappling with challenging circumstances and navigating life-altering events. Beverly Cleary created Dear Mr. Henshaw in response to her young readers’ request that she write a book about divorce, and though the topic was rarely seen in children’s books at the time, Cleary took on the challenge. Through Leigh Botts, Cleary highlights the emotional intricacies of children experiencing trauma and offers a highly nuanced and personal view of one child’s experience of divorce and its effects on his family. Cleary doesn’t portray divorce in simplistic terms or dilute the narrative for her younger audience but instead explores the complexities of family dynamics and the emotional impact divorce has on children. When the narrative begins, Leigh’s letters to Mr. Henshaw reveal a young, innocent child swept up in his love of books and dogs. If his parents have issues, he is blissfully unaware of them, and his narration indicates that he is generally happy in his life.

Leigh reveals the divorce when he answers Mr. Henshaw’s questionnaire, and the tone of his letters shifts when he enters sixth grade and reveals that he and his mother have moved to a new town. Once Leigh discloses his family situation, the letter-writing practice shifts from a way to praise his favorite author to a coping mechanism for his grief. The loss of a cohesive family unit disrupts Leigh’s stability and warps his sense of belonging and identity. He experiences intense emotional ups and downs as he searches for the reason his parents can’t stay together. First, he blames his mother, and then he blames himself, wondering if they’d be happier if he had never been born. Through Leigh’s letters and later his journal entries, Cleary explores how a fractured family can cause a child to feel intense emotional turmoil.

Leigh’s struggles also highlight the way in which a child’s need for consistent physical and emotional support can waver in the wake of family trauma. Leigh and his mother struggle financially after the divorce, a reality for many single parents left with the primary caregiving role. Leigh is keenly aware of the monthly struggle to make rent and put food on the table, and he worries constantly that his mother is working too hard. However, Leigh’s lack of material possessions bothers him far less than his father’s absence. In his letters, he relates happy memories of when his family was whole and fantasizes about spending time with his father on extended cross-country trips. Leigh’s sadness soon morphs into depression and crippling loneliness. He speaks often of how much time he spends alone, saying, “I don’t mind being alone after school, but I do in the morning before the fog lifts and our cottage seems dark and damp” (27). The solitude pushes Leigh to find outlets for his grief like writing letters and diary entries and taking long walks. Eventually, these outlets lead Leigh toward healing human connections such as his friendship with Mr. Fridley, entering the writing contest and meeting Mrs. Badger, and bonding with his classmates over lunch box theft. The end of the novel finds Leigh’s personal life on an upswing as he continues to hone his writing skills and enjoys spending time with his new friend, Barry. However, Leigh’s family life remains challenging, and his father’s abrupt return doesn’t bring about the happy resolution Leigh might once have expected. Instead he is left with conflicting emotions about his father. Cleary’s ambivalent ending illustrates her commitment to realistically depicting the effect that divorce has on children.