Stead, Philip C

Peter isn’t optimistic about moving to a house in the woods with his father and faithful dog. An artfully restrained text never explains why they’ve moved, but there’s a sense of melancholy in the father’s stance and in the woods’ bareness. As protection again the “unfriendly” forest, Peter fashions the eponymous Lenny out of pillows, blankets, and string. Subtly evoking Sendak’s Mickey, Peter “pushed and pulled and kneaded the wrapped-up pillows like dough”; he then leaves Lenny to guard a nearby bridge to “keep the dark woods on the other side where they belong.” Although this makes Peter feel safer, he worries that Lenny is lonely, so he makes him a companion, Lucy. In the daytime, Lenny and Lucy watch over Peter’s solitary play, but something is missing. Enter Millie