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A review by jenbsbooks
The Wheel on the School by Meindert DeJong
4.75
This was mentioned at my local bookclub, and I looked it up. There is no kindle or audio, and it seems out-of-print, some price gouging for physical copies. I looked at my library though, and they had a copy, so I checked it out. It's a bit of a "I would have LOVED this had I read it as a child" and overall sentimental rating (ironic, as this is my first read of it).
This reminded me of "The Great Brain" series a little, focusing on the lives of young kids with a lot less parental supervision than most kids have now ;) I was thinking maybe they had the same illustrator (but no, GB is Mercer Mayer, this is Maurice Sendak, both do have a lot of well known and classic illustrations to their name). Having Dutch ancestry, this was fun also.
I really enjoyed getting to know the children, and their quest, and how each ended up interacting with other people in the town, and learning things and growing and working together toward a common goal. It really was uplifting and such a sweet story.
Not absolutely chronological, as the kids went their separate ways, and so we'd hear part of a story featuring one character (all 3rd person omniscient POV), then show another character, with some overlap (so sometimes we already knew what had happened for a portion).
I don't know if I'll get around to reading this again, but I wouldn't mind having a copy for my bookshelves. It would be one I'd read to grandchildren ... if I had them (not yet).
Chapters ... (1) Do You Know About Storks (2) To Wonder Why (3) Wagon Wheel (4) Jella and the Farmer (5) Pier and Dirk and the Cherry Tree (6) Eelka and the Ancient Wheel (7) Aaka and the Tin Man (8) Lina and the Upturned Boat (9) The Wheel Rim (10) Wagon in the Sea (11) The Storm and the Storks (12) The Wheel on the School (13) Flotsam and Jetsam (14) The Tots in the Tower (15) Storks in the Sea ... I have to say I quite like a TOC with headings, that I can glance over and fully be reminded of the story and which chapter any specific information takes place.
Quotes -
"That's the trouble with being twins - if you don't know something, you don't know it double."
"... but first to dream and then to do - isn't that the way to make a dream come true?"
This reminded me of "The Great Brain" series a little, focusing on the lives of young kids with a lot less parental supervision than most kids have now ;) I was thinking maybe they had the same illustrator (but no, GB is Mercer Mayer, this is Maurice Sendak, both do have a lot of well known and classic illustrations to their name). Having Dutch ancestry, this was fun also.
I really enjoyed getting to know the children, and their quest, and how each ended up interacting with other people in the town, and learning things and growing and working together toward a common goal. It really was uplifting and such a sweet story.
Not absolutely chronological, as the kids went their separate ways, and so we'd hear part of a story featuring one character (all 3rd person omniscient POV), then show another character, with some overlap (so sometimes we already knew what had happened for a portion).
I don't know if I'll get around to reading this again, but I wouldn't mind having a copy for my bookshelves. It would be one I'd read to grandchildren ... if I had them (not yet).
Chapters ... (1) Do You Know About Storks (2) To Wonder Why (3) Wagon Wheel (4) Jella and the Farmer (5) Pier and Dirk and the Cherry Tree (6) Eelka and the Ancient Wheel (7) Aaka and the Tin Man (8) Lina and the Upturned Boat (9) The Wheel Rim (10) Wagon in the Sea (11) The Storm and the Storks (12) The Wheel on the School (13) Flotsam and Jetsam (14) The Tots in the Tower (15) Storks in the Sea ... I have to say I quite like a TOC with headings, that I can glance over and fully be reminded of the story and which chapter any specific information takes place.
Quotes -
"That's the trouble with being twins - if you don't know something, you don't know it double."
"... but first to dream and then to do - isn't that the way to make a dream come true?"