Literature / Wemberly Worried

Wemberly's worried you won't like her TV Tropes page.

Wemberly worried about everything. Big things. Little things. And things in between.

Then it was time for school to start. And Wemberly worried even more.

Wemberly Worried is a 2000 children's picture book by Kevin Henkes.

Wemberly is a mouse girl who worries about absolutely everything — dangerous playground equipment, losing her doll, her friends not coming to her birthday party, and just about anything that happens. But the biggest, most worrisome thing of all is coming: the beginning of nursery school. Can Wemberly overcome her fears?

For other books by the same author, see Chrysanthemum and Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse.

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This picture book provides examples of:

• Alliterative Title: Wemberly Worried.
• An Aesop:
  • Don't worry too much about things. Take life as it comes, because everything will probably turn out alright.
  • Having something in common can be the first step to making a new friend.
  • If you struggle with something, it's likely that others do too, and You Are Not Alone.
• Bold Inflation: To express Wemberly's worries about the first day of school, the words "She worried all the way there." take up almost the entire page.
• Call-Back: Lilly appears in the Halloween parade, and she's carrying her purple plastic purse that was the focus of Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse.
• The Cameo: In the Halloween parade, Lilly and Julius — who appear in Kevin Henkes' other books — can be seen wearing Bedsheet Ghost costumes and Groucho Marx glasses and noses. (Most of their bodies are hidden, but Lilly can be identified by her red boots with white stars and her purple plastic purse.)
• Cartoon Cheese: Two of the mice wear cheese-shaped costumes in the Halloween parade.
• Commonality Connection: Invoked. When Wemberly's parents talk to her teacher Ms. Peachum about her being nervous, Ms. Peachum introduces her to another girl named Jewel who is also shy, is wearing stripes, and has a doll. They become fast friends and enjoy their first day of nursery school together.
• Funny Animal: As with Kevin Henkes' other picture books, all the characters are anthropomorphic mice.
• Girls Love Stuffed Animals:
  • Wemberly has a pink and yellow plush bunny named Petal that serves as her Security Blanket. She worries about bad things happening to Petal, too.
  • One of the things that draws her to Jewel is the fact that Jewel also has a plush — a blue cat, named Nibblet.
• Good Parents: Wemberly's parents reassure her when she worries and try to help her stop worrying so much.
• Lost Toy Grievance: Wemberly cries when she loses Petal, and worries that she'll never see her again. Thankfully, her mom easily finds Petal.
  Wemberly: (crying) Petal's lost forever!
  Mom: (holding Petal) I found her, sweetie!
• Morton's Fork: On Halloween, Wemberly dresses as a butterfly, but worries that there will be too many other children wearing butterfly costumes in the neighborhood parade. Then, when it turns out no one else is wearing a butterfly costume, Wemberly worries because she's the only one!
• Moving the Goalposts: Wemberly worries so much that even when one of her worries doesn't come true, her mind finds something else to worry about. For example, when it's her birthday, she's worried that no one will show up to her party. But when all the guests show up, she's worried there won't be enough cake for everyone.
• Mythology Gag: When Wemberly is about to start nursery school, one of the things she worries about is the other children making fun of her name. This is exactly what happens to Chrysanthemum in Kevin Henkes' previous book, Chrysanthemum.
• Nervous Tics: When Wemberly is especially worried, she rubs the ears of her stuffed bunny, Petal. Jewel admits that she does the same with her stuffed cat Nibblet, only she rubs her nose instead.
• Nervous Wreck: Wemberly is a girl who worries about absolutely everything, including her first day of school. When the teacher introduces her to another girl named Jewel who is also shy and timid, they become friends, and are happy enough that they both stop worrying so much.
• Pale Females, Dark Males: Wemberly's mother has white fur, and her father has grey fur.
• Patchwork Kids: Wemberly is a mouse with white fur and grey spots. Her mother has white fur, while her father has grey fur.
• Positive Friend Influence: Having Jewel as a friend to play with helps Wemberly to feel not so worried on her first day of nursery school, and it's implied the reverse is true as well.
• Pretty Butterfly: Wemberly dresses as one for Halloween.
• Stock Animal Diet: Two of the young mice dress up as blocks of Cartoon Cheese in the Halloween parade.