Tillie and the Wall

I have hopes that if enough children read this book, our world can become more unified in some ways. I think this is one of the more effective of Lionni's fables. I mean, they're all worth reading, but in some the message isn't quite as clear or convincing.

Nobody has passed the wall that the mice live next to. But one day Tillie decides that she will dig underneath it to get to the other side. She succeeds and all the mice celebrate her success!

This is a great reminder that you can try to do things that no-one has done before, and that you should question the way things are. It's thinking like this that really changes things in the world. It's a powerful message to hear that just because no one has tried to do something, that it doesn't mean that it can't be done.

This is a sweet story (most of Lionni's stories are sweet, aren't they?) about a mouse and... well, yes, a wall : )

She works hard to get over the wall, or around the wall, or through the wall... until finally she realizes she can go UNDER it, and she's hailed as a hero for ever.

I don't know why Lionni's stories are so good, there's not much too them, but they... they last.

Tillie longs to know what is on the other side of the wall. One day she finds a way to get there, and her discovery opens new worlds to many others.

This story is about a field of mice who never talk about, or wonder about the wall they live by. Tillie the young mouse would stare at the wall and wonder about the other side. Her friends and herself tryed to climb the wall, drill a peep hole with a rusty nail, and they tried to walk to the end of the wall. Then one day Tillie saw a worm diging in the ground and thats when it hit her, if she wanted to get to the other side she was going to have to dig her way. Once she reached the other side she saw that there were mice just like her. They threw her a party and then followed her back to her side. When they arrived they threw another party chanting Tillie's name.

I really enjoyed this story. It had me trying to come up with ways for show more Tillie to get to the other side of the wall and I also was trying to imagine what was on the other side.

This would be a good short story to read aloud. You can have the student guess what was on the other side or even have them come up with ways to get over the wall. show less

This is a simple story about the importance of friendship and the value of determination. Teamwork is on display with Tillie the mouse and her friends. Determination is portrayed even while failing and being disappointed. Tillie doesn't quit! The final results are worthwhile to Tillie.

A mouse (Tillie) wonders what is on the other side of the great wall and decides to find out, after digging under it she realizes that on the other side are mice just like her.