Meindert DeJong (1)Reviews

Based on true events during the Sino-Japanese War, a young Chinese boy, Tien Pao, and his piglet were separated from his parents and baby sister. The Japanese had burned and occupied their village, and they were forced to flee. One day the family sampan -- carrying Tien Pao and his pig -- accidentally floated back into enemy territory. After making his way to shore, he sought to find his way back to his family through treacherous mountainous trails. Starving and exhausted, he and his pig slept in caves by day, and travelled by night.

One of those days he witnessed the Japanese shoot down an American military plane. Tien Pao rescued the injured pilot, and with the aid of a group of Chinese guerrillas, they carried him back to his unit. And when Tien Pao arrived at the village where his parents were last seen, the people were already fleeing because of the Japanese. Tien Pao searched relentlessly until he was picked up by a couple of American pilots and taken back to their barracks where they looked after him. All sixty pilots did. Hence the name House of Sixty Fathers.

Meanwhile, the injured pilot Tien Pao met in the mountains was part of this unit, and he took the young boy to search for his parents. Of course, he recognized his mother while she was working at a nearby airfield, where they were reunited.

This juvenile story has won many awards: Newberry Honor, Han Christian Andersen, and ALA Notable Children's Book. The author wrote this story based on his experiences as a pilot in China during WWII.

I read this to my kids for school because we are studying China during the 1900s to current times. It was somewhat juvenile for them, but it gave them a sense of China before communism, and when the U.S. and China were allies. Now not so much. I also gave the book three stars because it was "agreeable" and we liked it.

Tien Pao is all alone in enemy territoy. Only a few days before, his family had escaped from the Japanese army, fleeing downriver by boat. Then came the terrible rainstorm. Tien Pao was fast asleep in the little sampan when the boat broke loose from its moorings and drifted right back to the Japanese soldiers. With only his lucky pig for company, Tien Pao must begin a long and dangerous journey in search of his home and family.

AR: 4.7

4.5 stars

This is a very charming story about the 6 school-age children who live in a tiny Dutch fishing village called Shora (in Friesland). They get to wondering about why storks settle in all of the other villages, but never Shora, and how they can attract the birds. They decide that they need a wagon wheel to put on a roof for the birds to nest in and the bulk of the story is of the children searching all over the village for a wheel. They end up developing relationships with some of the older members of the village and the entire community gets involved in the stork project.

My mom read this aloud to me and my siblings when we were young and I remember we all liked it a lot; I read it to two of my nieces (ages 6 and 8) and they really enjoyed it, too.

The only reason I'm giving it 4.5 stars instead of 5 is that some of the sentences are a bit lengthy and include interjections that make reading it aloud a bit awkward at points. I also wish there had been a quick pronunciation guide included at the beginning of the book to help with the Dutch names. I got most of them right but had to Google a couple.

Why did the storks no longer come to the little Dutch fishing village of Shora to nest? It was Lina, one of the six schoolchildren, who first asked the question, and she set the others to wondering. And sometimes when you begin to wonder, you begin to make things happen. So the children set out to bring the storks back. They had to overcome many obstacles, including the fierce and threatening sea. But they wouldn't give up - and soon their determination and their vision got the whole village working, until at last the dream began to come true.

reviewed

I vaguely remember that this is about kids getting storks to nest in a Dutch village. I remember thinking at the time that the dialogue sounded too American rather than Dutch.

This is a great book-- I can see why it won the Newbery medal. And I was heartened to see that even in the '50s we were encouraged to see beyond our own limited views, to see the value that others, old or young, thin or "fat", can bring to a project. Now on to more Newbery winners!

I love this book. Mr. DeJong writes with true humanity.

We read this as a family read aloud with a 7, 10 and 12 year old and we couldn't put it down! We all loved it. I wouldn't give it to a young child to read on their own. It was good for the children to imagine what it would be like for other kids growing up through a war. LOVED IT!

00008880

00008841

Newbery Medal 1955. Pleasant story of how the children's search for a wheel to put on the school so the storks can nest in a Dutch dikeside village works to change the attitudes of the whole town.

Slow read. But the children got into what was going to happen. They also enjoyed reading about a different culture of kids. Slow read though. Rich. Long. Classic.

There is virtually no plot to this book, and it is delightful! It is quiet, gentle and nostalgic.
The Grandfather of Davie, a Dutch boy of unspecified age (I imagined him about 6 years old), tells him that he will get him a pet rabbit. About half the book is about Davie's excitement as he looks forward to getting the rabbit, and the other half is about what happens after he gets the rabbit. And honestly, not a great deal happens. But that's not the point.
DeJong is a master at portraying the inner thoughts and emotions of children. THAT is the point of this book. We learn about every little thought and feeling that goes through Davie's mind, and it reminds us with a sort of joyful nostalgia, about when we were that young... of a time when something as simple as getting a rabbit could completely and absolutely saturate all of our thoughts and actions.
Though written for upper elementary grade children, and a Newbery Honor book, I'm not sure the target age would appreciate "Shadrach" much. Today's 5th graders don't want to read about 6-year-olds. I think the perfect audience is adults who still enjoy intermediate books (like myself) or parents of children close to Davie's age.

This cute book won the Newbery Award in 1955. It is illustrated in black and white by Maurice Sendak.

This story takes place in the small village of Shora in the Netherlands. Theonly girl of the 5 students at the town school, Lina, writes a story wondering why Shora doesn't have storks like the neighboring towns. The teacher tells the kids to wonder about it. Which leads to their discussing it. They learn that Shora did have storks, and their oldest neighbors remember them. The students learn they need a wheel on the roof, for storks to nest on. They search for a wheel, and pretty soon the whole town (and neighbors from another town) is involved. They meet older neighbors they have been afraid of or just never spoke to, they have adventures, and they learn each others' strengths. A very sweet story about how you can accomplish something if you work hard, work together, and think outside the box.

You can't judge a book by its cover. You can't always judge a book by its synopsis either.
Synopsis: A group of six school children in Holland at some unspecified time in the past, decide they need to put a wagon wheel on the roof of their school so migrating storks will have a place to nest, and will do so in their town, bringing good luck. The entire book is pretty much the story of the kids, and adults that they drag into their scheme, trying to first find a spare wagon wheel, then get it to the school, get it mounted on the roof, and then attract storks. And yet, the book was fun, endearing, and occasionally exciting.
There are no bad guys. A few of the children are benignly naughty, as all children are from time to time. A few of the adults are cranky or short-tempered, as all adults are from time to time, but you always know everyone is good. Whereas most YA books seem to be about family, friendship, or both, this book is more about community and cooperation. What can happen when everyone works together towards a common goal.
It was the 1955 Newbery winner, and I have to wonder if it seemed old fashioned even then. It does now, but in a good way. And although set in Holland, this is not one of those Newbery winners that seem primarily trying to teach another country's life and culture to American children. The story is about things all children will relate to.
I'm not sure who today's audience would be. It seems rather long to engage many 3rd or 4th graders, but they would probably enjoy it the most. Today's middle schooler would probably find it rather naively sweet and therefore something to scoff at. But this 52 year old enjoyed it.

DeJong drew you into a dog's life, interpreting things from its perspective. We could see how its treatment affected how he responded. Meindert also gave the perspectives of those around the dog, unlike some books written exclusively from a dog's view.

A sad tale of a lonely, run-away dog, hiding but not wanting to.

Sometimes the redundancy of descriptions were omitted while I read aloud to the boys, but the plot moved along, creating anticipation.

The boys enjoyed it.

This is one of those children's classics that I had never read. It caught my eye because of the cover with a Maurice Sendak illustration. I enjoyed all the little illustrations inside. The story was good too.

A young boy who had been ill for a long time is promised a rabbit by his grandfather. The story follows his agony in waiting an entire week for the eponymous rabbit to arrive, and then through the first few weeks of learning to care for it.
A saccharine-like story; just way too cutesy for me.

Not your usual talking animals with human-like personalities in this book. Most of the characters in this book are animals, and they think and act the way real animals do.
It is the story of a little red hen, who is rejected by the flock of chickens after she loses her toes, "the man" who owns the chickens, and takes a liking to the little red hen, trying to make a pet out of her, and "the dog" who wanders onto the farm as a stray and tries to make a home there.
The story line is simple and the dialogue minimal. It has a certain sweet gentleness to it, but for my taste, I prefer the more usual talking animals that allow for deeper thought and more complex plots.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book, the Newbery winner in 1955. It was quite the page turner with some very touching moments and a great deal of excitement. I fell in love with the characters especially as I watched their growth. I'll be interested to hear what my book group thought of it.

Davie is just a little boy and he has been promised a pet rabbit by his Grandpa. But, he has to wait a whole week before the little black rabbit who will be named Shadrach will come home. The first half of the book was Davie's obsession and anticipation during the week before Shadrach came home. The rest of the book included trials and tribulations as poor Shadrach seemed to be getting skinnier and he managed to escape a couple of times.

This was cute. It being a children's chapter book, there were some nice little illustrations by Maurice Sendak.

I bought this book on impulse, and I am glad I did! The author tells the story of a little kitten that is last, and unwanted, and lonely. DeJong uses a sing-song style of writing that is pleasant to read. I'm keeping this one.

A little bit Black Beauty, a little bit Incredible Journey. ?áCandy is not a brave dog like Terhune's, but a timid dog... and yet, somehow, he manages to survive, and, ultimately, to earn a safe home. ?áInspirational, in a way - Candy could be taken as a role model.