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Gandralizdis ant stogo
Šeši mažytės Olandijos žvejų kaimelio mokyklos mokiniai užsidega mintimi žūt būt atsivilioti gandrus į savo kaimą. Iš vaikystės įspūdžių rašytojas kuria nepakartojamą vaiko pasaulį, kupiną vakiškų vargų ir džiaugsmų, šilumos ir meilės, kupiną rūpesčio gamtos grožiui ir ateitimi. Ši apysaka laikoma viena geriausių šiuolaikinių knygų vaikams.
176 pages, Hardcover
First published October 20, 1954
139 people are currently reading
6575 people want to read
About the author
Meindert De Jong
44 books74 followersMeindert De Jong was an award-winning author of children's books. He was born in the village of Wierum, of the province of Friesland, in the Netherlands.
De Jong immigrated to the United States with his family in 1914. He attended Dutch Calvinist secondary schools and Calvin College, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and entered the University of Chicago, but left without graduating.
He held various jobs during the Great Depression, and it was at the suggestion of a local librarian that he began writing children's books. His first book The Big Goose and the Little White Duck was published in 1938.
He wrote several more books before joining the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, serving in China. After the war he resumed writing, and for several years resided in Mexico. He returned for a time to Michigan. After settling in North Carolina, he returned to Michigan for the final years of his life.
De Jong immigrated to the United States with his family in 1914. He attended Dutch Calvinist secondary schools and Calvin College, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and entered the University of Chicago, but left without graduating.
He held various jobs during the Great Depression, and it was at the suggestion of a local librarian that he began writing children's books. His first book The Big Goose and the Little White Duck was published in 1938.
He wrote several more books before joining the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II, serving in China. After the war he resumed writing, and for several years resided in Mexico. He returned for a time to Michigan. After settling in North Carolina, he returned to Michigan for the final years of his life.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 757 reviews
September 23, 2022
Don't know why it took me so long to read this classic set in the province where my Grandma Dena Spoelstra was born. Love, love, love the kids and the dream they had for a return of storks to their little village of Shora. But the roofs are too steep! They need to find some wagon wheels. Wonderful illustrations by Maurice Sendak as well. ❤
June 2, 2011
I adore this book. It’s like coming up for a breath of fresh air after being stuck underwater. I think that each and every one of us could use a break of this kind. In this busy, busy world we live in we never take a second to smell the roses. We’re too busy worrying about our cars, our relatively slow internet, getting into college, broken iPods, going on dates, the latest fashion in clothes, being accepted… And here is a group of school kids who are worried about whether or not storks come to their village. The simplicity of this book is golden. As we follow the individual story lines of Lina, Jella, Auka, Eelka, Pier and Dirk we are touched by their concern for these birds. I love the unity of their classroom along with their teacher who allowed them to dream and taught them to reach for the stars
June 25, 2011
The beauty of these older Newberry winners is their innocent simplicity. The story was simple- children in a small town trying to entice storks to nest on the roof of their school. It really didn't stray much from that. It was, I felt, a refreshing break from the adolescent drama so common to the more recent Newberry winners. I really enjoyed the characters particularly the elderly poeple that the children came to know and love. This was a beautiful, unassuming story that I enjoyed very much.
November 15, 2019
You might not want to count this children's book as a 'real' book, or as a book that fits a challenge for "strong women', as the 'Strong Woman' here is a little girl who shares space in the adventures with mostly boys and men. But Lina is an amazing girl and will surely grow up to be a matriarch of strong women. Not only does she long to participate in the boys' outdoor games, but she is the inspiration for the big school project of luring the storks back to the village, and when something needs to happen, she's usually the one who makes it so.
This book was Newbery Medal winner of 1955, written in America by an American author who remembered his Dutch childhood and brought the Netherlands to life for generations of readers.
I had many opportunities to read this as a child but never did. I love it now, but tbh I think my instincts then were right and that I would not have appreciated it when I was a child. Now I love the humor, the environmental message, the fondness for the Dutch countryside and culture, the insights into the lives of children... and those of adults, too... well, really, there is so much to love about DeJong's work. Some of it is too subtle for most young readers... but that just means that his books have a very good 're-read value' imo.
This book was Newbery Medal winner of 1955, written in America by an American author who remembered his Dutch childhood and brought the Netherlands to life for generations of readers.
I had many opportunities to read this as a child but never did. I love it now, but tbh I think my instincts then were right and that I would not have appreciated it when I was a child. Now I love the humor, the environmental message, the fondness for the Dutch countryside and culture, the insights into the lives of children... and those of adults, too... well, really, there is so much to love about DeJong's work. Some of it is too subtle for most young readers... but that just means that his books have a very good 're-read value' imo.
April 23, 2022
But I don’t know much about storks, because storks never come to Shora.
This is my second pick for Karen and Simon’s #1954Club.
Children’s literature is a genre I always enjoy, especially because much of it has elements when can appreciate as an adult as well, giving it so many layers, and so much depth. When I was looking up books for 1954, there were many many tempting choices amongst the children’s lit in the year, but when I came across one completely new to me, The Wheel on the School and read its description, it instantly appealed and I knew it was one I’d enjoy, but I hadn’t realized how much.
Meindert DeJong (1906–1991) was a Dutch born American author of children’s literature and winner of the Hans Christian Andersen award for his contributions to the field in 1962, besides several other prizes and nominations. After holding various jobs during the great depression, he began writing children’s fiction at the suggestion of a local librarian, and published his first work, The Big Goose and the Little White Duck in 1938. My pick, The Wheel on the School won the Newberry Medal in 1955, and it didn’t take long to see why.
The Wheel on the School takes us to the small fishing village of Shora in Friesland (the Netherlands) where DeJong himself belonged (Friesland, not Shora). Here there are only six children who go to school (the rest are too small or too big)—five boys—big Jella, slow and clumsy Eleka, kind Auka, twins Dirk and Pier (who claim that if they make one mistake, it counts as double—and who look like ‘second cousins’)—and one girl, Lina, often left out of all the games with the boys, since, well, she’s a girl. And the story begins when Lina voluntarily writes an essay on storks, who visit all the other villages around them, including Nes where her aunt lives, but never come to Shora. The teacher pleased with this effort encourages all the children to start thinking about why this may be (one important reason turns out to be the sharp roofs in the village, the solution for which, as nearby villages do, is to put up an old wagon wheel on the roof, where storks can nest) sparking off an effort which may have been started by the children, but which soon begins to involve all the adults as well, to bring storks (back) to Shora! And not only that, the children soon begin to find that the people they thought ‘not important’ and even those they thought scary, may not be that at all!
This was an absolutely delightful story with so many aspects that really touched my heart. To start off with is the theme of story of bringing the storks to Shora; I love how it incorporates the idea of making space for nature in our lives or more so, treating nature as something that we should care about as a part of our lives rather than something that is divorced from or away from us. The village of Nes for instance, treats it as a matter of course to put up wheels for the storks every year, and Lina soon discovers that this was the case in Shora in the past as well, and soon the rest of the village begins to be involved in the project, turning it into a common dream.
I also loved how this project changes the perspective of and relationship between the children and some of the villagers and between the villagers themselves; at the start for instance, when DeJong is describing the village, he writes,
There were a few more houses, but in those houses lived no children—just old people. They were well, just old people, so they weren’t important. There were more children, too, young children, toddlers, not schoolchildren—so that is not so important either.
But of course, as our story proceeds, this changes drastically. Almost at the start, Lina, left out as usual by the boys from their vaulting games, meets Grandmother Sibble III, an old lady in the village. Grandmother Sibble not only tells her how there were once storks in Shora, but helps her identify some reasons by telling her to think as storks would, and encourages her dream by showing her a chocolate tin, with a picture of houses with storks in them. And, so, Grandmother Sibble, sitting
‘in the porch of her little house’ had ‘suddenly…become important. She wasn’t just an old person any more, miles away, she was a friend. A friend, like another girl, who also wondered about storks’.
Likewise, another old man, Douwa too helps Lina with a task, while some of the boys befriend old, cranky Janus, who has lost both his legs, and spends his time chasing birds and little boys away from his cherry tree (and Janus finds himself looked at through new eyes by grownups too, giving him a new lease on life) while Auka finds a new friend in the tinman, but I’ll leave you to find out how. And the younger children too end up playing an important role! The children’s fathers, who come home for a short while during a storm, too are badgered to join in, and help with putting up the wheel on the school.
Besides the stork project and how it brings everyone together, I loved how the book gives us a picture of life in a small Dutch fishing village in a simpler time: the fathers are almost always away at sea, so the village is mostly mothers and children; treats are rare but enjoyed to the fullest (and surprise ones taken with all the more relish); the newspaper arrives once a week—one copy that is shared by the fisherfolk; the tinman goes about in his cart, selling new pots and pans and patching up old ones; material goods are not plenty, but what is there is respected, and shared. (This is a Dutch village so there is a dyke of course, and people wear wooden shoes.) People are content, and happy, not hankering after more and more as has become the norm in the present day.
There were a few dramatic moments in the story involving storms and tides, and while for a moment, I was wondering whether this would have done better as a simpler story, without all the drama, I realised also, that storms and tides would very much be a reality in a coastal village. The ending itself though following a dramatic moment, is done very well, so subtle that I loved it.
A delightful and heartwarming read that I’d highly recommend.
4.5 stars
This is my second pick for Karen and Simon’s #1954Club.
Children’s literature is a genre I always enjoy, especially because much of it has elements when can appreciate as an adult as well, giving it so many layers, and so much depth. When I was looking up books for 1954, there were many many tempting choices amongst the children’s lit in the year, but when I came across one completely new to me, The Wheel on the School and read its description, it instantly appealed and I knew it was one I’d enjoy, but I hadn’t realized how much.
Meindert DeJong (1906–1991) was a Dutch born American author of children’s literature and winner of the Hans Christian Andersen award for his contributions to the field in 1962, besides several other prizes and nominations. After holding various jobs during the great depression, he began writing children’s fiction at the suggestion of a local librarian, and published his first work, The Big Goose and the Little White Duck in 1938. My pick, The Wheel on the School won the Newberry Medal in 1955, and it didn’t take long to see why.
The Wheel on the School takes us to the small fishing village of Shora in Friesland (the Netherlands) where DeJong himself belonged (Friesland, not Shora). Here there are only six children who go to school (the rest are too small or too big)—five boys—big Jella, slow and clumsy Eleka, kind Auka, twins Dirk and Pier (who claim that if they make one mistake, it counts as double—and who look like ‘second cousins’)—and one girl, Lina, often left out of all the games with the boys, since, well, she’s a girl. And the story begins when Lina voluntarily writes an essay on storks, who visit all the other villages around them, including Nes where her aunt lives, but never come to Shora. The teacher pleased with this effort encourages all the children to start thinking about why this may be (one important reason turns out to be the sharp roofs in the village, the solution for which, as nearby villages do, is to put up an old wagon wheel on the roof, where storks can nest) sparking off an effort which may have been started by the children, but which soon begins to involve all the adults as well, to bring storks (back) to Shora! And not only that, the children soon begin to find that the people they thought ‘not important’ and even those they thought scary, may not be that at all!
This was an absolutely delightful story with so many aspects that really touched my heart. To start off with is the theme of story of bringing the storks to Shora; I love how it incorporates the idea of making space for nature in our lives or more so, treating nature as something that we should care about as a part of our lives rather than something that is divorced from or away from us. The village of Nes for instance, treats it as a matter of course to put up wheels for the storks every year, and Lina soon discovers that this was the case in Shora in the past as well, and soon the rest of the village begins to be involved in the project, turning it into a common dream.
I also loved how this project changes the perspective of and relationship between the children and some of the villagers and between the villagers themselves; at the start for instance, when DeJong is describing the village, he writes,
There were a few more houses, but in those houses lived no children—just old people. They were well, just old people, so they weren’t important. There were more children, too, young children, toddlers, not schoolchildren—so that is not so important either.
But of course, as our story proceeds, this changes drastically. Almost at the start, Lina, left out as usual by the boys from their vaulting games, meets Grandmother Sibble III, an old lady in the village. Grandmother Sibble not only tells her how there were once storks in Shora, but helps her identify some reasons by telling her to think as storks would, and encourages her dream by showing her a chocolate tin, with a picture of houses with storks in them. And, so, Grandmother Sibble, sitting
‘in the porch of her little house’ had ‘suddenly…become important. She wasn’t just an old person any more, miles away, she was a friend. A friend, like another girl, who also wondered about storks’.
Likewise, another old man, Douwa too helps Lina with a task, while some of the boys befriend old, cranky Janus, who has lost both his legs, and spends his time chasing birds and little boys away from his cherry tree (and Janus finds himself looked at through new eyes by grownups too, giving him a new lease on life) while Auka finds a new friend in the tinman, but I’ll leave you to find out how. And the younger children too end up playing an important role! The children’s fathers, who come home for a short while during a storm, too are badgered to join in, and help with putting up the wheel on the school.
Besides the stork project and how it brings everyone together, I loved how the book gives us a picture of life in a small Dutch fishing village in a simpler time: the fathers are almost always away at sea, so the village is mostly mothers and children; treats are rare but enjoyed to the fullest (and surprise ones taken with all the more relish); the newspaper arrives once a week—one copy that is shared by the fisherfolk; the tinman goes about in his cart, selling new pots and pans and patching up old ones; material goods are not plenty, but what is there is respected, and shared. (This is a Dutch village so there is a dyke of course, and people wear wooden shoes.) People are content, and happy, not hankering after more and more as has become the norm in the present day.
There were a few dramatic moments in the story involving storms and tides, and while for a moment, I was wondering whether this would have done better as a simpler story, without all the drama, I realised also, that storms and tides would very much be a reality in a coastal village. The ending itself though following a dramatic moment, is done very well, so subtle that I loved it.
A delightful and heartwarming read that I’d highly recommend.
4.5 stars
March 31, 2023
"Ah, yes, little Lina," the teacher said. "So impossibly impossible that it just had to be. And the long dream--storks on every roof in Shora--is beginning to come true." (PG 298)
John Newbery Medal Winner- 1954
What a wonderful surprise of a book!! And to think it started with a story about storks by Lina, and then a wheel for the roofs, and then friendships between the generation gaps... The story spiraled into so much more than storks. Why doesn't my roof have storks?
I loved all the characters especially the children in their wooden shoes. I enjoyed that each child had their own chapter and were soon intertwined with the other children's timeline of events. I felt and saw their threatening sea storm--DeJong's descriptions were too visual, amazing. The author is a wonderful storyteller. And the pictures by Maurice Sendak were an added bonus.
This is a story of how back in the day kids had to go do stuff and figure it out and were curious about the world around them and had respect for their elders. It reminds us that if we don't give in to every whim, as a parent, the kids will have to work out life on their terms, maybe even use their imagination.... What a thought.....
I will definitely look into his other books as two more novels (Shadrach and Hurry Home) were both runners-up for the 1954 Newbery Award.
Quick side story and thoughts::: We live in a town home and on the balcony we put a bracket that holds a basketball rim and backboard (Cool concept) We got it during Covid so kids could go outside and play since all sports were cancelled. So one of my neighbors complained to the HOA about "noise." Kid's noise. We had to take it down.
These will be the same people that will complain that kids don't know how to talk or have conversations with anyone because now my kids are locked up at home to watch TV or play video games all day so we don't disturb anyone with our children's laughter and joy. But on the other hand no one has complained about my neighbors LOUD muffler on his Mustang every time he starts his car and peels out of the neighborhood. But we are the A-holes.....
John Newbery Medal Winner- 1954
What a wonderful surprise of a book!! And to think it started with a story about storks by Lina, and then a wheel for the roofs, and then friendships between the generation gaps... The story spiraled into so much more than storks. Why doesn't my roof have storks?
I loved all the characters especially the children in their wooden shoes. I enjoyed that each child had their own chapter and were soon intertwined with the other children's timeline of events. I felt and saw their threatening sea storm--DeJong's descriptions were too visual, amazing. The author is a wonderful storyteller. And the pictures by Maurice Sendak were an added bonus.
This is a story of how back in the day kids had to go do stuff and figure it out and were curious about the world around them and had respect for their elders. It reminds us that if we don't give in to every whim, as a parent, the kids will have to work out life on their terms, maybe even use their imagination.... What a thought.....
I will definitely look into his other books as two more novels (Shadrach and Hurry Home) were both runners-up for the 1954 Newbery Award.
Quick side story and thoughts::: We live in a town home and on the balcony we put a bracket that holds a basketball rim and backboard (Cool concept) We got it during Covid so kids could go outside and play since all sports were cancelled. So one of my neighbors complained to the HOA about "noise." Kid's noise. We had to take it down.
These will be the same people that will complain that kids don't know how to talk or have conversations with anyone because now my kids are locked up at home to watch TV or play video games all day so we don't disturb anyone with our children's laughter and joy. But on the other hand no one has complained about my neighbors LOUD muffler on his Mustang every time he starts his car and peels out of the neighborhood. But we are the A-holes.....
March 1, 2017
I remember reading and loving this Newbery award-winner from Holland about children in a tiny fishing village on the Dutch coastline and it's still great. Their teacher encourages them to figure out why there are no lucky storks living on the roofs of their village (unlike the surrounding towns) and work together to remedy the situation. They wind up befriending adults, most notably the formerly surly and isolated double amputee Janus, who performs feats of strength with his powerful arms. The whole town pitches in and everyone gets to know each other in a different way, but yet it's not cloying, it's inspiring. And it's so satisfying when they finally achieve their goal.
What I was surprised by was how much of a period piece the book was though it was only written in 1956. For example, no one ever wears anything but wooden shoes and they have little traditional Dutch caps and the like. Unfortunately the gender roles are also a bit dated. Although Lina, the only girl in the group of kids, is clearly the heroine of the book, she is always being left out of the boys' more boisterous games and is supposed to be the only one who cries. This rubbed me the wrong way though it is obviously true to period. But this is a mere quibble.
As an educator, I loved the fact that the children were engaged in an authentic learning task, and how much they learned from it.
Read or re-read The Wheel on the School. You won't be disappointed.
What I was surprised by was how much of a period piece the book was though it was only written in 1956. For example, no one ever wears anything but wooden shoes and they have little traditional Dutch caps and the like. Unfortunately the gender roles are also a bit dated. Although Lina, the only girl in the group of kids, is clearly the heroine of the book, she is always being left out of the boys' more boisterous games and is supposed to be the only one who cries. This rubbed me the wrong way though it is obviously true to period. But this is a mere quibble.
As an educator, I loved the fact that the children were engaged in an authentic learning task, and how much they learned from it.
Read or re-read The Wheel on the School. You won't be disappointed.
February 23, 2017
One of the joys of teaching is getting to reread old friends. This one must be read in short sections but
it is a wonderful story of life in community.
it is a wonderful story of life in community.
March 13, 2023
Welcome to Shora, a fishing village in Holland on the shore of the North Sea in Friesland. Shora has some houses, a church, a clock tower, and a school, but it is the school children that makes this town and this story so special. Of these six school children, there is only one girl and her name is Lina. One day, in the middle of arithmetic, Lina asks a question that will set in motion a series of events that will change their little village forever: “Teacher, may I read a little story about storks?” You see, no one can remember a time when there were storks in Shora and Lina’s essay made everyone begin to wonder and ask why this was so. So begins the story of Jella, Eelka, Auka, twins Pier and Dirk, and Lina who share a common dream of bringing the storks back to Shora. But for now, that dream would have to wait…at least until after arithmetic.
Every now and then, a book comes along that reminds you why you fell in love with reading. Meindert DeJong’s story about a small Dutch village is such a book. It’s a charming and enchanting story about how a single dream ignited the imagination and united a village. DeJong brings the reclusive, the misunderstood, and the outsider together to show that each has importance and value. His message of inclusion and acceptance is delivered warmly and lovingly and gives readers a sense of hope and faith and the promise that perhaps dreams really can come true.
"The Wheel on the School" is a brilliant gem that shows us how a legless man could still walk tall among his fellow fishermen, how a heavyset and slow boy could become a hero, how a lonely grandmother could become a friend, and how a girl could be just as strong and brave as the boys. Mostly, this story reminds us that even in the midst of the impossible, lies the possible.
Every now and then, a book comes along that reminds you why you fell in love with reading. Meindert DeJong’s story about a small Dutch village is such a book. It’s a charming and enchanting story about how a single dream ignited the imagination and united a village. DeJong brings the reclusive, the misunderstood, and the outsider together to show that each has importance and value. His message of inclusion and acceptance is delivered warmly and lovingly and gives readers a sense of hope and faith and the promise that perhaps dreams really can come true.
"The Wheel on the School" is a brilliant gem that shows us how a legless man could still walk tall among his fellow fishermen, how a heavyset and slow boy could become a hero, how a lonely grandmother could become a friend, and how a girl could be just as strong and brave as the boys. Mostly, this story reminds us that even in the midst of the impossible, lies the possible.
July 21, 2015
I was delighted to find that not only does this book age very well, but it also joins Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH as one of the very few books in which the antagonist is a problem or situation rather than a human. The plot really is as simple as it sounds: the students want to put a wagon wheel on their school so that they can get storks to roost there. Problem-solving ensues. They encounter all sorts of physical, environmental, meteorological, and even economic obstacles, but at no point does a snobby rich kid or a greedy industrialist show up to twist a mustache. I found it refreshing and compelling to see a group of students carefully, scientifically work their way through the problem-solving process without some kind of cheesy moral oversimplification shoehorned in.
August 14, 2013
Loved this book! It's charming and original, and the surprises keep coming. DeJong uses everything to keep up the tension: the main characters, the entire village, an itinerant tinsmith, the weather, geography - he's ingenious. And the little brush-and-ink illustrations by Maurice Sendak are marvelous!
April 26, 2018
In the small Dutch village of Shora, there are no storks. Little Lina knows this. She wrote a composition on the subject. She would love for storks to return to Shora, but the roofs are too sharp. Perhaps if everyone put a wheel on their roofs the storks would come back. Teacher thinks this is a great plan but they also need trees. There aren't any trees in Shora. First things first, where to find a wheel that is not in use? Time is running out before the storks return to their familiar nesting places. Promising to cancel school for the day if storks land in Shora, Teacher sets the children on a quest to find a wheel. Which one will be the first to find a wheel, if they can find one at all? Where will it be? The expected places like a barn or unexpected? What is an unexpected place? Will the storks come to Shora?
This is a cute story I failed to remember from elementary school. Opening it again, I did not remember what it was about until I read about Lina's composition on storks. Then I remembered the wheel on the school but nothing else. The story starts out fairly slow. I didn't care for the choppy writing style in the beginning. The author may have been trying to mimic the speech pattern of a young child but it didn't quite flow smoothly enough to read. Once the children began their quest, the story picked up and I had a hard time putting it down. I especially liked how the teacher encouraged the children and got involved in the excitement too.
The setting is magnificent. I get a real sense of place from the architecture and the natural landscape. The canal and the dike play a huge part in the story. The weather also brings the story to life. I don't know specifically when the book was set- probably pre-WWII or even pre-WWI. The only real reference is to a Queen and looking up Queens of the Netherlands, I see Queen Wilhelmina ruled from 1890-1948 so we know the story takes place somewhere between those years! I liked the quaint village setting, the wooden shoes and the somewhat pre-modern lifestyle. They have newspapers and telegraphs and old steamers but no radios, TVs, cars or modern intrusions. This is a real farming village.
The storks play the lead role in the story. I learned a lot about storks from the story. The birds sound beautiful and magnificent. I was rooting for them to come to Shora and nest there. The newspaper article made me sad, like the children, and also because it sounds like these storks may have been endangered. (Wikipedia says yes they were endangered in the first half of the 20th-century). This understanding makes the story extra poignant.
Lina is the only school age girl in the village and the boys may not let her jump ditches because they think she'll squeal and cry but she's a plucky girl and more resourceful than the boys. The boys are portrayed as lazy and stupid. They barely have individual personalities. Lina is very sweet and caring and this proves to be crucial in the plot.
The story of Janus, the local crank, is pretty typical for a children's book of this period. However, I found him to be a fun character. I understand why he cultivates his grouchy persona and he understands why the children may be afraid of him. He adds some humor to the story later on in the book when it needs to be lightened up a bit.
The illustrations didn't wow me. For Maurice Sendak, they're tame black and white pencil drawings. They give an impression of a place. To do justice to the setting and the magnificent storks full color, full page illustrations would have been nice.
I think I enjoyed this book more as an adult than I did as a kid.
This is a cute story I failed to remember from elementary school. Opening it again, I did not remember what it was about until I read about Lina's composition on storks. Then I remembered the wheel on the school but nothing else. The story starts out fairly slow. I didn't care for the choppy writing style in the beginning. The author may have been trying to mimic the speech pattern of a young child but it didn't quite flow smoothly enough to read. Once the children began their quest, the story picked up and I had a hard time putting it down. I especially liked how the teacher encouraged the children and got involved in the excitement too.
The setting is magnificent. I get a real sense of place from the architecture and the natural landscape. The canal and the dike play a huge part in the story. The weather also brings the story to life. I don't know specifically when the book was set- probably pre-WWII or even pre-WWI. The only real reference is to a Queen and looking up Queens of the Netherlands, I see Queen Wilhelmina ruled from 1890-1948 so we know the story takes place somewhere between those years! I liked the quaint village setting, the wooden shoes and the somewhat pre-modern lifestyle. They have newspapers and telegraphs and old steamers but no radios, TVs, cars or modern intrusions. This is a real farming village.
The storks play the lead role in the story. I learned a lot about storks from the story. The birds sound beautiful and magnificent. I was rooting for them to come to Shora and nest there. The newspaper article made me sad, like the children, and also because it sounds like these storks may have been endangered. (Wikipedia says yes they were endangered in the first half of the 20th-century). This understanding makes the story extra poignant.
Lina is the only school age girl in the village and the boys may not let her jump ditches because they think she'll squeal and cry but she's a plucky girl and more resourceful than the boys. The boys are portrayed as lazy and stupid. They barely have individual personalities. Lina is very sweet and caring and this proves to be crucial in the plot.
The story of Janus, the local crank, is pretty typical for a children's book of this period. However, I found him to be a fun character. I understand why he cultivates his grouchy persona and he understands why the children may be afraid of him. He adds some humor to the story later on in the book when it needs to be lightened up a bit.
The illustrations didn't wow me. For Maurice Sendak, they're tame black and white pencil drawings. They give an impression of a place. To do justice to the setting and the magnificent storks full color, full page illustrations would have been nice.
I think I enjoyed this book more as an adult than I did as a kid.
June 19, 2020
I still love this book.
First time I loved it was when my fourth grade teacher read it to our class. This time I read it to my children and they loved it.
DeJong is a gifted writer who has great insight into human nature. The search for the wheels for nests for storks turns into a community event, where the whole town joins the children in their goal of bringing storks to Shora. The people of Shora open up their doors and hearts to the children and the children’s eyes are opened to who the people really are, not just their preconceived ideas and impressions.
As I read this, I have been grieving at what we are losing in our lockdown. We are distancing, losing hospitality, not sharing in griefs and joys in person. We are being told we have to be afraid of each other, the opposite of what happens in this book.
First time I loved it was when my fourth grade teacher read it to our class. This time I read it to my children and they loved it.
DeJong is a gifted writer who has great insight into human nature. The search for the wheels for nests for storks turns into a community event, where the whole town joins the children in their goal of bringing storks to Shora. The people of Shora open up their doors and hearts to the children and the children’s eyes are opened to who the people really are, not just their preconceived ideas and impressions.
As I read this, I have been grieving at what we are losing in our lockdown. We are distancing, losing hospitality, not sharing in griefs and joys in person. We are being told we have to be afraid of each other, the opposite of what happens in this book.
October 13, 2015
Sadly, Meindert DeJong's books are impossible to find where I live. I have a battered secondhand copy of this one that I read periodically. I love the way DeJong handles language, such as when Lina thinks of coming out with a clever answer at school and the boys in her class "sitting there with their mouths full of teeth." I love the way he gets into the minds of small children and remembers how they think and feel about things. Things that to an adult are "little" or "unimportant" can be huge to a child.
The children of Shora feel that something is missing--there are no storks on their roofs! Why not? And what can they do about it? It's easier to pull together when there are only about eight students in a one-room schoolhouse, but that doesn't mean it's not a good read. It is. Life is not perfect in little Shora--there isn't much to do (particularly if you're the only girl in the school), and all the children have to deal with their fears--of drowning, of heights, of dogs, of fierce Janus, the mean neighbour in a wheelchair. As they learn to face their fears and find ways to bring storks to Shora, they learn about getting along in their time and place--with each other, the smaller kids, and adults. I see a lot of negative reviews saying "this book isn't suitable for middle-school kids." No, nor was it intended for them when first published. It's meant for kids in the 8-10yr bracket. Though thinking adults can also enjoy it if their inner child hasn't been done to death by Play Station and "gritty" crime, vampires, the substitution of cynicism for humour, etc.
On another website I have read a scathing review saying that Friesland does not exist. It most certainly does, though Shora is fictional. Said reviewer was also oh so superior because the children's names are not "real Dutch names." Given the fact that the person didn't know about Friesland, I wonder how they decided that? And why does it matter? It's a gentle, life affirming story about a past time and place. And I devoutly wish I could go there.
The children of Shora feel that something is missing--there are no storks on their roofs! Why not? And what can they do about it? It's easier to pull together when there are only about eight students in a one-room schoolhouse, but that doesn't mean it's not a good read. It is. Life is not perfect in little Shora--there isn't much to do (particularly if you're the only girl in the school), and all the children have to deal with their fears--of drowning, of heights, of dogs, of fierce Janus, the mean neighbour in a wheelchair. As they learn to face their fears and find ways to bring storks to Shora, they learn about getting along in their time and place--with each other, the smaller kids, and adults. I see a lot of negative reviews saying "this book isn't suitable for middle-school kids." No, nor was it intended for them when first published. It's meant for kids in the 8-10yr bracket. Though thinking adults can also enjoy it if their inner child hasn't been done to death by Play Station and "gritty" crime, vampires, the substitution of cynicism for humour, etc.
On another website I have read a scathing review saying that Friesland does not exist. It most certainly does, though Shora is fictional. Said reviewer was also oh so superior because the children's names are not "real Dutch names." Given the fact that the person didn't know about Friesland, I wonder how they decided that? And why does it matter? It's a gentle, life affirming story about a past time and place. And I devoutly wish I could go there.
December 29, 2019
I read The Wheel on the School hoping to get my daughter motivated to read it with me in English. Unfortunately, for her anyway, I was unable to transmit my enthusiasm about the story to her despite its originality and excitement. For here, we are back in a previous epoque with horses and carriages on the Dutch seaside with raging storms threatening to overwhelm the dike and the village which has no storks. These birds have traditionally been associated with seaside Dutch villages, but in Shora, for reasons that Lina and her classmates will discover, no longer has storks. The quest initiated by their wonderful, inquisitive (if somewhat timid) teacher leads them to meet other members of their small community and bridge generational gaps while breaking down stereotypes. It is an absolutely charming story that I hope, perhaps later in the future, I will be able to share with my daughter.
November 16, 2021
Great story, love how the children came to know and appreciate the older people in their town. Didn't always love the writing style, but it wasn't too bad to take away enjoyment of the story.
November 9, 2025
Lina is the only girl at the village school. She starts asking why storks don't come to nest in their seaside village, and all the other schoolchildren begin to wonder why as well. They notice that other villages have old wheels on their roofs, so that the storks have a place to build their nests. They start asking around to see if they can find an old wheel to put on the roof of the schoolhouse, but it's more difficult than they imagined to get a wheel. Most wheels are being used on wagons, not sitting around to be bird nests. As the obstacles against them continue to grow, the children refuse to give up, and soon the whole village is helping them, hoping to attract the good luck that storks bring with them.
It was really lovely to see how the children bring together characters from the village that would never otherwise have interacted with each other. Through the project to bring storks to the village, they are inspired to come together in generosity and good will, whereas they were usually stingy and grumpy. The children's hope is catching, and even the adults begin to hope for a bright future for their village.
The writing is delightfully old-fashioned, and the plot comes together so perfectly as all the different characters of the village have something to add to the story. I love the charming setting in Holland! The village is protected by a dike, and the fishermen come in and out of the harbor in their fishing fleet. It's really sweet to see this community coming together to share what little they have.
Lina is an adorable character! I liked her the best. It's interesting how she has courage in some circumstances, but in other situations, she is a big scaredy cat. She will stand on a sandbar without flinching while the tide comes in, but she's scared of a barking farm dog.
The most dramatic character is Mr. Janus, who is in a wheelchair. The children think he is the meanest man in the village, because he carefully guards his cherry tree from any boys who try to steal the cherries. But as they all come together to find a wheel for the storks, they gradually realize that Janus is a fearless leader who will organize the villagers into an effective team to find a wheel and get it on the schoolhouse roof before the end of nesting season. Janus has the biggest heart, and the most hilarious sense of humor.
Such a beautiful book, full of fun and pure joy!
It was really lovely to see how the children bring together characters from the village that would never otherwise have interacted with each other. Through the project to bring storks to the village, they are inspired to come together in generosity and good will, whereas they were usually stingy and grumpy. The children's hope is catching, and even the adults begin to hope for a bright future for their village.
The writing is delightfully old-fashioned, and the plot comes together so perfectly as all the different characters of the village have something to add to the story. I love the charming setting in Holland! The village is protected by a dike, and the fishermen come in and out of the harbor in their fishing fleet. It's really sweet to see this community coming together to share what little they have.
Lina is an adorable character! I liked her the best. It's interesting how she has courage in some circumstances, but in other situations, she is a big scaredy cat. She will stand on a sandbar without flinching while the tide comes in, but she's scared of a barking farm dog.
The most dramatic character is Mr. Janus, who is in a wheelchair. The children think he is the meanest man in the village, because he carefully guards his cherry tree from any boys who try to steal the cherries. But as they all come together to find a wheel for the storks, they gradually realize that Janus is a fearless leader who will organize the villagers into an effective team to find a wheel and get it on the schoolhouse roof before the end of nesting season. Janus has the biggest heart, and the most hilarious sense of humor.
Such a beautiful book, full of fun and pure joy!
May 23, 2014
I adore this book. I never heard of it until I saw it at the bookshelf at my local library. Something drew me to it and I read the summary. Why do I want to read about six schoolchildren from Holland? How did Lina influenced her whole community about trying to get storks to live in her town? Anyway, I checked it out. After reading this book, I can see the depth of the characters, the actions, and suspense. Each child in the book reminds me of real children that I care for and my peers and myself as we were children. I love the learning and team work. I'm glad that this book won the Newbery Award back in 1955. This book is timeless and so universal.
Please read this book for yourself or even better yet read aloud to your kids. Though I've been told that the read aloud is better done for students from third grade and up. Though, I don't see why not read it to a first grader. I may have to break it down and it will take longer to read through. There are first graders who need to hear that it's okay to make mistakes and how we can learn from them as well as fix the hurt done. They may even see themselves in the six school children and two younger kids as well as recognize the adults in the book as someone they know in life.
Please read this book for yourself or even better yet read aloud to your kids. Though I've been told that the read aloud is better done for students from third grade and up. Though, I don't see why not read it to a first grader. I may have to break it down and it will take longer to read through. There are first graders who need to hear that it's okay to make mistakes and how we can learn from them as well as fix the hurt done. They may even see themselves in the six school children and two younger kids as well as recognize the adults in the book as someone they know in life.
May 23, 2012
Love, love, loved this book! I'd read his "Journey to Peppermint Street" a million years ago, and the illustrator Maurice Sendak recently passed away, so it seemed fitting to read this one recently, even though I'm ... two? behind the Newbery group.
Anyway, I loved it. At some point near the end, I couldn't believe how much I was enjoying a book about storks, of all things! The way this town was described reminds me quite a bit of the town my dad is from. It's on the Northern corner of Holland, and has two streets. The town ends at the dyke, and I have sat on that dyke many, many times. It was SO easy to picture what was happening in this book because that town was the stuff of my memories.
Loved the interaction with the older people, loved the boys, loved the schoolteacher, Janus, .... oh, this was so good.
Anyway, I loved it. At some point near the end, I couldn't believe how much I was enjoying a book about storks, of all things! The way this town was described reminds me quite a bit of the town my dad is from. It's on the Northern corner of Holland, and has two streets. The town ends at the dyke, and I have sat on that dyke many, many times. It was SO easy to picture what was happening in this book because that town was the stuff of my memories.
Loved the interaction with the older people, loved the boys, loved the schoolteacher, Janus, .... oh, this was so good.
January 6, 2020
When I weigh the pros and cons of homeschooling, reading this book is a prominent pro. It was lovely. It was perfect. But I didn’t read it as a kid. And my kids would not likely have picked it to read. I picked it on my turn to pick the book we read together, and it was an absolutely lovely, perfect read for a family contemplating the meaning of education and the importance of community. It is also a good time to be reminded in lovely ways how one person’s curiosity, cultivated and shared, can transform a community and achieve results assumed impossible.
October 20, 2017
از بذت بخشترین ومعصومانه ترین رمانهاییست که خواندهام. داستان چند بچهی روستایی که برای برگرداندن لکلکها به روستایشان تلاش میکنند. ترجمهی روانش کمک بی نظیری به خوانش رمان مرده. کتاب را در نوجوانیام هدیه کرفتم و خواندم. بارها. و اشارتی است بر دوران اوج انتشارات کانون پرورش فکری کودکان و نوجوانان
February 15, 2016
The children (and I!) all thoroughly enjoyed this book. The language and imagery where rich and flowed smoothly and with a nice cadence too. "It's so impossibly impossible, I can believe it now."
May 26, 2025
This review originally appeared on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom in 2016.
When Lina, one of the six schoolchildren in the Dutch fishing village of Shora, writes an essay questioning the lack of storks nesting in Shora, the teacher reads it aloud to the class. Afterwards, he challenges the students (Lina, and her male classmates Auka, Jella, Eelka, Pier, and Dirk), to begin wondering seriously about the reasons storks might not come to their village, and suggests that by wondering, they may set important things in motion. The class's musings about the stork question lead them to realize that the way to attract storks is to give them a place to nest. In the absence of any trees, they decide to put a wagon wheel on the roof of their school so at least one pair of storks can move in. Finding a wagon wheel proves difficult, however, and soon the whole community is brought together in an effort to find and install the wheel and to help storks safely land upon it.
The description of this book might sound a little cheesy, but the execution is anything but silly. The story unfolds very organically, beginning simply with a schoolgirl's curiosity, and spiraling outward into a life-changing community project. The story is inspirational, but not in a showy or sentimental way. The reader is inspired because the characters are so real and so believable, and the obstacles they must overcome are familiar and relatable. This is a book about the value of asking questions, looking for solutions, and working together, but it never preaches to the reader about a single one of these themes.
I did have some trouble with the language that made me consider abandoning the book early on. DeJong often repeats ideas, and even specific phrases, over and over again within the space of just a few sentences, which interrupted the rhythm of the story for me. I read segments of it aloud to my younger daughter (yes, babies love novels!) and I found myself getting tripped up quite a bit. I can't tell if this was a byproduct of DeJong's first language not being English, or if he was purposely constructing his sentences differently to highlight the difference between the language of his characters and that of his readers. I think, once I settled into the voice of the book, it worked well as a means of conveying that the characters do not actually speak English, but it made reading the book take twice as long as it needed to.
The Maurice Sendak illustrations also intrigued me. The black and white spot drawings which appear throughout the book are quite different from his iconic images of Max and the wild things, but they show his range as an artist. I could see hints of Max and Pierre and Mickey (from In the Night Kitchen) in the figures' faces, but because this is a novel and not a picture book, the role of the illustrations was more supportive of the text and less interwoven with it. Sendak provides the details of how the characters dress, including their wooden shoes, and he shows the excitement the community feels about their stork project in the way they move together in groups. I also absolutely love the original cover, with the children looking and pointing upward at the stork, as it manages to convey everything the book is about without truly giving anything away.
Overall, I enjoyed this book very much. It's as relevant today as it was 60 years ago, and it's a perfect read-alike for Great Northern?, the last book of the Swallows and Amazons series, which focuses on protecting a rare bird species. It also reminded me vaguely of Because of Winn-Dixie, because of the way involvement with the storks seems to heal members of the community of some of their difficulties, and of The View From Saturday, in the sense that the characters come together as a team quite by accident, without fully understanding the influence of their wise teacher.
When Lina, one of the six schoolchildren in the Dutch fishing village of Shora, writes an essay questioning the lack of storks nesting in Shora, the teacher reads it aloud to the class. Afterwards, he challenges the students (Lina, and her male classmates Auka, Jella, Eelka, Pier, and Dirk), to begin wondering seriously about the reasons storks might not come to their village, and suggests that by wondering, they may set important things in motion. The class's musings about the stork question lead them to realize that the way to attract storks is to give them a place to nest. In the absence of any trees, they decide to put a wagon wheel on the roof of their school so at least one pair of storks can move in. Finding a wagon wheel proves difficult, however, and soon the whole community is brought together in an effort to find and install the wheel and to help storks safely land upon it.
The description of this book might sound a little cheesy, but the execution is anything but silly. The story unfolds very organically, beginning simply with a schoolgirl's curiosity, and spiraling outward into a life-changing community project. The story is inspirational, but not in a showy or sentimental way. The reader is inspired because the characters are so real and so believable, and the obstacles they must overcome are familiar and relatable. This is a book about the value of asking questions, looking for solutions, and working together, but it never preaches to the reader about a single one of these themes.
I did have some trouble with the language that made me consider abandoning the book early on. DeJong often repeats ideas, and even specific phrases, over and over again within the space of just a few sentences, which interrupted the rhythm of the story for me. I read segments of it aloud to my younger daughter (yes, babies love novels!) and I found myself getting tripped up quite a bit. I can't tell if this was a byproduct of DeJong's first language not being English, or if he was purposely constructing his sentences differently to highlight the difference between the language of his characters and that of his readers. I think, once I settled into the voice of the book, it worked well as a means of conveying that the characters do not actually speak English, but it made reading the book take twice as long as it needed to.
The Maurice Sendak illustrations also intrigued me. The black and white spot drawings which appear throughout the book are quite different from his iconic images of Max and the wild things, but they show his range as an artist. I could see hints of Max and Pierre and Mickey (from In the Night Kitchen) in the figures' faces, but because this is a novel and not a picture book, the role of the illustrations was more supportive of the text and less interwoven with it. Sendak provides the details of how the characters dress, including their wooden shoes, and he shows the excitement the community feels about their stork project in the way they move together in groups. I also absolutely love the original cover, with the children looking and pointing upward at the stork, as it manages to convey everything the book is about without truly giving anything away.
Overall, I enjoyed this book very much. It's as relevant today as it was 60 years ago, and it's a perfect read-alike for Great Northern?, the last book of the Swallows and Amazons series, which focuses on protecting a rare bird species. It also reminded me vaguely of Because of Winn-Dixie, because of the way involvement with the storks seems to heal members of the community of some of their difficulties, and of The View From Saturday, in the sense that the characters come together as a team quite by accident, without fully understanding the influence of their wise teacher.
March 4, 2021
Loved this novel so much! Honestly when I was first recommended the book I thought “The Wheel on the School” how could that possibly be interesting? Then after the first chapter I asked myself, “storks? I don’t want to read a book about storks.” But I am so glad I kept reading. The book was about so much more than a wheel, a school, or storks. It was about a community that came together as one and helped each other around these 3 supposedly unrelated items: storks, a wheel, and a school.
January 14, 2021
Heart warming, hilarious, exceptionally well-written. Some of the best character development I've read! This book was a wonderful, much loved read-aloud for our family.
August 26, 2024
Really enjoyed this sweet hope-filled story. Set in the Netherlands and about a community that really pulls together…just such a sweet story!
December 21, 2024
I read this book over and over as a child. I think it was partly because my mom loved it. She looked for it high and low for years ("everywhere it could be and everywhere it could not possibly be"), and I still remember my dad's triumph when he came out of a used bookstore with it. She had already scoured the shelves and gone to the van to wait for him to finish (her health was poor, and her stamina, even for used bookstores, limited). He was taking a last walk through the stacks and the owner came out of the back room with an armload of fresh used books. On the top was a pristine hardcover of The Wheel on the School.
Such exclaiming and delight!
Of course then we all found it everywhere, in every three or so used bookstores we walked into for the next five years. I still pick up every good copy I find for a good price, and pass out the book to uninitiated friends.
Such exclaiming and delight!
Of course then we all found it everywhere, in every three or so used bookstores we walked into for the next five years. I still pick up every good copy I find for a good price, and pass out the book to uninitiated friends.
March 12, 2023
This children’s book, which won the 1955 Newbery Medal, is a lovely story about a group of schoolchildren in a fishing village on the coast of the North Sea in the province of Friesland in the Netherlands. I’m actually surprised that I wasn’t familiar with the book until recently, because I grew up in the 1950s in a community of Dutch immigrants and descendants of Dutch immigrants, many of whom (including some in my family) were from Friesland. That community would certainly have felt a connection with this story. In any event, I’m glad that I finally discovered it.
The story is grounded in the fact (which I didn’t know) that storks are common in the Netherlands, to which they migrate from Africa in the spring. The storks build nests on the roofs of houses and on poles. They are traditionally considered to bring blessings and good fortune to communities where they settle.
Unfortunately, there are no storks in the village of Stora. Lina, the only girl in her small class at school, writes an essay about storks and why they never come to Stora. She admits that she doesn’t really know much about storks, and none of the boys in the class know much either. The teacher encourages them to think about storks and wonder why they don’t build their nests in Stora. “‘For sometimes when we wonder, we can make things begin to happen.’”
Walking through the village, Lina realizes that storks don’t build their nests in Stora because the roofs are too sharp. From the oldest woman in town, she learns that storks used to nest there, until a huge storm uprooted all the trees. Lina gets the idea that if they could put wagon wheels on the roofs, storks would be able to build nests on the wheels. Everyone is excited by the thought of doing this, and the teacher sets the plan in motion by letting them out of school early.
The students fan out through the area to look for a wagon wheel. Finding one is more difficult than they imagined. But the search gives the children opportunities to get to know some people they wouldn’t otherwise interact with. Lina gets unexpected help from the 93-year-old Douwa and is surprised by his vigor and his humor. “‘I never knew you were so funny,’ she said gratefully. ‘I didn’t know people were funny when they were old.’” And twins Pier and Dirk get to know Janus, a legless man that all the kids have been afraid of. He is not at all like they imagined him to be, and he becomes the de facto leader of their wagon wheel project.
The children also display abilities they didn’t know they had. Auka shows his ingenuity by convincing two struggling villagers to help each other. Eelka, whose classmates consider him “slow and fat and clumsy,” rescues the strongest boy, Jella, from a canal. “It felt wonderful …, knowing he had done it—done what he had intended to do and done it just as he had planned. He had been strong …. It was a wonderful proud feeling.”
And Lina finds new respect. Before the stork project, the boys often excluded her. “That was the trouble with being the only girl: you got left out of things.” But now, not only had she initiated the project and come up with the idea of how to bring storks to Stora, but she has shown her mettle by taking a leading, active role in obtaining a wheel.
I can certainly see why The Wheel on the School won the Newbery Medal. All of the main characters, both the children and the adults with whom they interact, are very well drawn. The story contains lots of action that would be quite intriguing and thrilling to young readers—I myself found much of it to be exciting. And it paints a great picture of life in a rural Frisian fishing village: how all the villagers, even the children, know about the tides, how the men want to go to church to thank God after they safely escape a storm, even how the one copy of the newspaper comes only once a week and is passed around from house to house.
As I suggested above, the story contains some valuable life lessons for children. Maybe the primary one is that if a person—even a child—has a dream, even if it appears impossible, with enough imagination and effort it can come true.
This is an excellent book that deserves to remain on children’s literature reading lists for years to come. And it’s a pretty good read for adults too.
The story is grounded in the fact (which I didn’t know) that storks are common in the Netherlands, to which they migrate from Africa in the spring. The storks build nests on the roofs of houses and on poles. They are traditionally considered to bring blessings and good fortune to communities where they settle.
Unfortunately, there are no storks in the village of Stora. Lina, the only girl in her small class at school, writes an essay about storks and why they never come to Stora. She admits that she doesn’t really know much about storks, and none of the boys in the class know much either. The teacher encourages them to think about storks and wonder why they don’t build their nests in Stora. “‘For sometimes when we wonder, we can make things begin to happen.’”
Walking through the village, Lina realizes that storks don’t build their nests in Stora because the roofs are too sharp. From the oldest woman in town, she learns that storks used to nest there, until a huge storm uprooted all the trees. Lina gets the idea that if they could put wagon wheels on the roofs, storks would be able to build nests on the wheels. Everyone is excited by the thought of doing this, and the teacher sets the plan in motion by letting them out of school early.
The students fan out through the area to look for a wagon wheel. Finding one is more difficult than they imagined. But the search gives the children opportunities to get to know some people they wouldn’t otherwise interact with. Lina gets unexpected help from the 93-year-old Douwa and is surprised by his vigor and his humor. “‘I never knew you were so funny,’ she said gratefully. ‘I didn’t know people were funny when they were old.’” And twins Pier and Dirk get to know Janus, a legless man that all the kids have been afraid of. He is not at all like they imagined him to be, and he becomes the de facto leader of their wagon wheel project.
The children also display abilities they didn’t know they had. Auka shows his ingenuity by convincing two struggling villagers to help each other. Eelka, whose classmates consider him “slow and fat and clumsy,” rescues the strongest boy, Jella, from a canal. “It felt wonderful …, knowing he had done it—done what he had intended to do and done it just as he had planned. He had been strong …. It was a wonderful proud feeling.”
And Lina finds new respect. Before the stork project, the boys often excluded her. “That was the trouble with being the only girl: you got left out of things.” But now, not only had she initiated the project and come up with the idea of how to bring storks to Stora, but she has shown her mettle by taking a leading, active role in obtaining a wheel.
I can certainly see why The Wheel on the School won the Newbery Medal. All of the main characters, both the children and the adults with whom they interact, are very well drawn. The story contains lots of action that would be quite intriguing and thrilling to young readers—I myself found much of it to be exciting. And it paints a great picture of life in a rural Frisian fishing village: how all the villagers, even the children, know about the tides, how the men want to go to church to thank God after they safely escape a storm, even how the one copy of the newspaper comes only once a week and is passed around from house to house.
As I suggested above, the story contains some valuable life lessons for children. Maybe the primary one is that if a person—even a child—has a dream, even if it appears impossible, with enough imagination and effort it can come true.
This is an excellent book that deserves to remain on children’s literature reading lists for years to come. And it’s a pretty good read for adults too.
October 26, 2022
I wasn't convinced at first that I was going to like it.
I've tried a couple of DeJong's other works and gave up on them. His writing style isn't a favorite - first, it feels like the kind of narrative you'd see in a picture book with slightly repetitive and expanding sentences. Second, it's way more detailed, not in description, but in writing every single action/movement the characters make. It gets a little wordy and I ended up skimming (for this reason, I'm not sure I'd hand this book over to a struggling reader). However, I'm glad I stuck with this story - worth it! And I’m now thinking that perhaps I should go back and try his others again.
The story was great! I really liked several of the characters and their development. I was entertained by the different scenarios each of the children found themselves in. And the lessons that the children learned are good ones - that old people can be friends too, and to give people a try as they just might surprise you. I also appreciated how the teacher of the little school set a process for learning/doing in motion, starting with having the kids wonder/imagine/ask questions.
Chapter six had me chuckling out loud. What a comical scene! Bumbling kid, dismembered wheel ... smirk.
I'd recommend this one for a family read-aloud for sure!
Geography: Holland
Ages: 5 - 12
Cleanliness: "gosh" and "golly" are used a couple of times. Mentions smoking a pipe. A couple of kids decide to nag their fathers about doing something for them and one boy mutters something that isn't nice. A couple of kids do something that isn't right but feel bad/learn from it.
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I've tried a couple of DeJong's other works and gave up on them. His writing style isn't a favorite - first, it feels like the kind of narrative you'd see in a picture book with slightly repetitive and expanding sentences. Second, it's way more detailed, not in description, but in writing every single action/movement the characters make. It gets a little wordy and I ended up skimming (for this reason, I'm not sure I'd hand this book over to a struggling reader). However, I'm glad I stuck with this story - worth it! And I’m now thinking that perhaps I should go back and try his others again.
The story was great! I really liked several of the characters and their development. I was entertained by the different scenarios each of the children found themselves in. And the lessons that the children learned are good ones - that old people can be friends too, and to give people a try as they just might surprise you. I also appreciated how the teacher of the little school set a process for learning/doing in motion, starting with having the kids wonder/imagine/ask questions.
Chapter six had me chuckling out loud. What a comical scene! Bumbling kid, dismembered wheel ... smirk.
I'd recommend this one for a family read-aloud for sure!
Geography: Holland
Ages: 5 - 12
Cleanliness: "gosh" and "golly" are used a couple of times. Mentions smoking a pipe. A couple of kids decide to nag their fathers about doing something for them and one boy mutters something that isn't nice. A couple of kids do something that isn't right but feel bad/learn from it.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell on Etsy!
June 1, 2020
2020: Birthday Book #68 from my dear friend Trish. I've read this book several times since she herself introduced it to me. It is so enchanting it completely won my heart and has become one of my all-time favorite children's books.
2019: Reread for Children's Book Week. And just as thoroughly charming as the first read, and the second. Love this book!
Several years ago, my not-so-evil twin Trish recommended this Newbery Medal winner, which honestly, I'd never heard of, much less read. I really liked it a lot and would add my recommendation. It's the story of a small group of Dutch schoolchildren who work together and with the grown-ups in their small fishing village to try to entice storks back to the village to bring them good luck. Very charming and I loved seeing how the children interacted with the adults. I first read this five years ago and, let me tell you, the reason I re-read books is because I rarely remember all the details unless I've read the book several times. So it's often like a delightful first read for me. I think I liked this one even more than I did the first time and will likely add it to the list of "re-read often" books in my house.
2019: Reread for Children's Book Week. And just as thoroughly charming as the first read, and the second. Love this book!
Several years ago, my not-so-evil twin Trish recommended this Newbery Medal winner, which honestly, I'd never heard of, much less read. I really liked it a lot and would add my recommendation. It's the story of a small group of Dutch schoolchildren who work together and with the grown-ups in their small fishing village to try to entice storks back to the village to bring them good luck. Very charming and I loved seeing how the children interacted with the adults. I first read this five years ago and, let me tell you, the reason I re-read books is because I rarely remember all the details unless I've read the book several times. So it's often like a delightful first read for me. I think I liked this one even more than I did the first time and will likely add it to the list of "re-read often" books in my house.
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