 Harper Children's Audio presents Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary, performed by Pedro Pascal. Copyright 1983 by Beverly Cleary, production copyright 2009 by Harper Collins Publishers. May 12th. Dear Mr. Henshaw, my teacher read your book about the dog to our class. It was funny. We licked it. Your friend, Lee Botts. Boy. December 3rd. Dear Mr. Henshaw, I am the boy who wrote to you last year when I was in the second grade. Maybe you didn't get my letter. This year, I read the book I wrote to you about called, Ways to Amuse a Dog. It is the first thick book with chapters that I have read. The boy's father said city dogs were bored, so Joe could not keep the dog unless he could think up seven ways to amuse it. I have a black dog. His name is Bandit. He is a nice dog. If you answer, I get to put your letter on the bulletin board. My teacher taught me a trick about friend. The eye goes before E so that at the end, it will spell end. Keep in touch. Your friend, Lee, pronounced like L-E-E-Botts. November 13th. Dear Mr. Henshaw, I am in the fourth grade now. I made a diorama of Ways to Amuse a Dog, the book I wrote to you about two times before. Now our teacher is making us write to authors for book week. I got your answer to my letter last year, but it was only printed. Please, would you write to me in your own handwriting? I am a great enjoyer of your books. My favorite character in the book was Joe's dad, because he didn't get mad when Joe amused his dog by playing a tape of a lady singing, and his dog sat and howled like he was singing too. Bandit does the same thing when he hears singing. Your best reader, Lee Bots. December 2nd. Dear Mr. Henshaw, I got to thinking about Ways to Amuse a Dog. When Joe took his dog to the park and taught him to slide down the slide, wouldn't some grown-up come along and say he couldn't let his dog use the slide? Around here grown-ups who are mostly real old with cats get mad if dogs aren't on leashes every minute. I hate living in a mobile home park. I saw your picture on the back of the book. When I grow up, I want to be a famous book writer with a beard like you. I am sending you my picture. It is last year's picture. My hair is longer now. With all the millions of kids in the U.S., how would you know who I am if I don't send you my picture? Your favorite reader, Lee Bots, enclosure, picture of me. We are studying business letters. October 2nd. Dear Mr. Henshaw, I am in the fifth grade now. You might like to know that I gave a book report on Ways to Amuse a Dog. The class liked it. I got an A minus. The minus was because the teacher said I didn't stand on both feet. Sincerely, Lee Bots. November 7th. Dear Mr. Henshaw, I got your letter and did what you said. I read a different book by you. I read Moose on Toast. I liked it almost as much as Ways to Amuse a Dog. It was really funny, the way the boy's mother tried to think up ways to cook the moose meat they had in their freezer. One thousand pounds is a lot of moose. Moose burgers, moose stew, and moose meatloaf don't sound too bad. Maybe moose mincemeat pie would be okay because with all the raisins and junk you wouldn't know you were eating moose. Creamed chipped moose on toast. Yuck! I don't think the boy's father should have shot the moose, but I guess there are plenty of moose up there in Alaska, and maybe they needed it for food. If my dad shot a moose, I would feed the tough parts to my dog Bandit. Your number one fan, Lee Bots. September 20th. Dear Mr. Henshaw, this year I am in the sixth grade in a new school in a different town. Our teacher is making us do author reports to improve our writing skills, so of course I thought of you. Please answer the following questions. How many books have you written? Is Boy Henshaw your real name, or is it fake? Why do you write books for children? Where do you get your ideas? Sample complete. Ready to continue?