Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Most people assume the grass is greener on the other side. The harsh reality is that is not always true. In the case of Wang, the main character in Walking Through Walls, he learns a valuable lesson. Walking Through Walls is a fantasy chapter book based on an ancient Chinese tale, providing a magical adventure.
Wang quickly gets tired of working in his family’s wheat field. Twelve-year-old Wang craves wealth and power. Instead of helping his father in the field, Wang spends most of his daydreaming about becoming a wealthy person.
Despite his father’s plea not to leave, Wang decides to go off in search of wealth.
After dinner, Wang speaks to his parents. “Mother, Father, I am twelve years old. The time has come for me to leave and seek my own way. Your life is not the life I want. My life will be full of riches and power. The Eternals live in the Lao Mountains, and that is where I am going.”
Off to the mountains goes Wang, but much to his dismay, he learns things are not as easy as he had pictured them to be. He began to wish he was back home with his parents and sister.
There are many lessons to be learned from this delightful story, and not just for child readers.
As parents we can’t always control our children, but the values we teach our children are the one thing they can always fall back on when they encounter hardships. This is exactly what Wang does, as soon as he realizes life with his parents wasn’t as bad as he had previously thought.
It is not easy to let our children venture off on their own, but this is the only way they will learn what is important in life.
The soft black-and-white illustrations by Willow Raven enhanced the story, and the reader can get a feel for the characters.
This well-written story is a must-have for every classroom, for the lessons it teaches are very valuable.
