Henry And Beezus

In these chapters, Henry continues to follow his plan of saving money for a bike. Despite his best efforts, Henry’s plans often unravel and leave him scrambling to make it right using The Power of Creative Problem-Solving. 

Henry’s attempts to overcome his obstacles add humor to the story and reinforce the importance of adapting to circumstances. For instance, Henry tries to train Ribsy to fetch the newspaper so that he will bring it to his parents every morning. However, this training goes too well, and Ribsy begins fetching every newspaper from every house, creating a disastrous scenario for Henry: “There was not just one Journal on the doormat. There was a whole pile of them. Ribsy sat beside the papers, wagging his tail and looking pleased with himself” (42). To resolve Ribsy’s interference in Scooter’s newspaper route, Henry has to somehow untrain his dog from his favorite new trick of fetching papers. 

Henry tries sprinkling red pepper on the papers to make them unappealing and even tries physically deterring Ribsy, but neither makes any impression on the dog. However, Henry notices when Ramona squirts Ribsy with a water pistol, scaring him away from the newspaper. Henry uses this strategy to finally “untrain” Ribsy: “Henry and Beezus shot [Ribsy] with two streams of water. Looking surprised and unhappy, Ribsy backed away from the paper and shook himself […] Ribsy was untrained at last” (51). By learning to discourage Ribsy by squirting him with the water pistol, Henry successfully overcomes the setback and continues with the paper route.

In another incident, Henry tries to be kind and patient with Ramona, his young neighbor, when she insists on buying a snack on the way to the bike auction. However, this causes him more problems when Ribsy receives a “parking ticket” outside the store, and the neighborhood kids convince him that he must pay the ticket or Ribsy could be punished: “‘See, it says that you have violated a code. The policeman has written the number of the law you broke […] Maybe they’ll put Ribsy in jail,’ suggested Robert” (60). Henry tries to adapt to the situation by finding a police officer before he starts bidding at the bike auction, deciding that it is best to pay the fine upfront so that he will know exactly how much money he has left for a bike. While there turns out to be no fine to pay, Henry’s quick thinking in trying to adapt to problems speaks to his problem-solving abilities. 

Henry’s problem-solving is part of his commitment to his goal of earning money and buying a bike, reflecting The Importance of Resourcefulness and Independence. While Henry gets advice and permission from his parents, he has to rely on his own wits to advance his goal. For example, Henry has to find his own opportunities to make money, such as negotiating with Scooter to take care of his newspaper route while he is away: “‘And I get to deliver papers while you’re away, don’t I?’ Henry was thinking of his bike fund again, now that Ribsy was untrained. ‘Sure,’ said Scooter, ‘if you don’t think it’s too hard work for a kid without a bike.’ ‘You just wait,’ said Henry. ‘I bet I get that bike sooner than you think’” (53). Henry’s continued resourcefulness adds depth to his character and helps drive the plot forward.

While Henry is very independent, he does have some help from his friends, adding to the story’s theme of The Dynamics of Friendship and Community. Beezus often supports Henry and is very invested in him fulfilling his vision. She helps him untrain Ribsy from his bad habit, saying, “I’ll help you keep Ribsy covered” (53). She also helps him do his trial run of the paper route, telling Scooter proudly, “I checked every address on the list with him just to make sure” (53). Beezus also tells Henry about the bicycle auction, knowing that it is a good opportunity for him to get an inexpensive bike: “Beezus handed Henry a newspaper clipping. ‘I thought maybe you’d like to see this.’ ‘Bikes for Tykes,’ was the headline. ‘Lost Bicycles up for Sale Tomorrow.’ […] This was Henry’s chance” (54). While Henry does not always enjoy Beezus’s company, she continually supports his goals and brings him closer to success.