Henry Winkler Reveals the 'Greatest Compliment Ever' He Gets from Kids Who Read His Books (Exclusive)
Henry Winkler Reveals the 'Greatest Compliment Ever' He Gets from Kids Who Read His Books (Exclusive)
Tommy McArdleFri, April 17, 2026 at 7:49 PM UTC
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Henry Winkler; Detective Duck: The Mystery of the Flash FloodCredit: Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal/Getty; Amulet Books -
Henry Winkler tells PEOPLE all about the touching compliments young people give him on his children's books, including the Hank Zipzer and Detective Duck series
Winkler collaborates with author Lin Oliver on his books; his 41st children's book, Detective Duck: The Mystery of the Flash Flood publishes in November
"I remember what it was to be eight and to fail at everything," he says of his affinity for writing for kids
Henry Winkler is not just a beloved Hollywood legend; he's a prolific children's author.
Winkler, 80, touched on his experiences meeting young people who read his children's books — among them, the Hank Zipzer and Detective Duck series — while chatting with PEOPLE recently about his new movie Normal. "You know what is my favorite compliment ever?" he says. "Children all over the world — because Hank Zipzer: The World's Greatest Underachiever, is [published] in a lot of countries, in seven languages, and no matter where you are, children come and they say, 'How did you know me so well?' That has gotta be the greatest compliment ever."
Winkler began writing children's books with author Lin Oliver in the early 2000s and will release his 41st children's book when Detective Duck: The Mystery of the Flash Flood publishes later this year. Some of those books, like the Hank Zipzer series, are inspired by his own struggles with dyslexia throughout his life. He told PEOPLE in a 2023 interview that he only realized he had dyslexia as an adult, when he and his wife Stacey took their son Jed to an occupational therapist after their boy displayed cognitive issues during school.
Today, Winkler says he's incredibly proud of his work with Oliver on their novels, which he says are "this whole new job" on top of over 150 memorable acting roles in television and film over the years.
Henry Winkler on Aug. 15, 2025Credit: VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty
When asked what he attributes the compliments children give him on his books to, Winkler says it's important "that you write the truth." "That you don't try to be the smartest guy in the room. You don't try to say, 'Look at me.' You say, 'We are all the same, and I'm gonna write my truth, and because we are all the same, it's gonna hit somebody,' " he says.
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Winkler tells PEOPLE that he and Oliver, 79, develop their books by simply telling each other stories, whether they are ones "that we've lived with, that she has lived with, with her children, or I lived with my children, my grandchildren."
"This is really interesting: as you're telling the story, it's not really going anywhere. It's not really spilling out of you. So you put it aside and come up with another premise," he says. "Now, all of a sudden, it is telling itself, and you can't speak fast enough with all the details and everything, and then a few months later, it's a book."
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Detective Duck: The Mystery of the Flash FloodCredit: Amulet Books
Among Winkler and Oliver's collaborations are 18 volumes in the Hank Zipzer series, three Detective Duck books and 12 books in the Here's Hank series, the latter of which also follows a child who struggles in school. "I remember what it was to be eight and to fail at everything," Winkler tells PEOPLE.
Normal is in theaters now. Detective Duck: The Mystery of the Flash Flood publishes Nov. 3.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
