Tag: fear

The Bears on Hemlock Mountain by Alice Dalgliesh (J Fiction)

There are no bears on Hemlock Mountain, no bears at all. There are no bears on Hemlock Mountain, no bears, no bears, no bears, no bears at all.

The Bears on Hemlock Mountain

Alice Dalgliesh (J Fiction)

Everybody knows that there are no bears on Hemlock Mountain, no bears at all. There are no bears on Hemlock Mountain, no bears, no bears, no bears, no bears at all. Under this well-known belief, Jonathan’s mother sends him across the mountain alone to bring back an iron pot from his Aunt Emma. As Jonathan crunch, crunch, crunches his way across the snowy ground, he hopes upon all hope that there really ARE no bears on Hemlock Mountain because if there are, what would one, lonely eight-year-old boy possibly do?

Recipient of the Newbery Honor Book award in 1953, The Bears on Hemlock Mountain is a quick read full of fun, repetitive phrases such as crunch, crunch, crunch and tick-tock, tick-tock, which makes this an ideal read-aloud book. Helen Sewell’s pen and ink illustrations give the story a genuine folklore feel and wonderfully complements this story based on a Pennsylvanian tall tale. This book is recommended for readers ages 5 to 9 and grade levels 1 to 4.

The story of Jonathan’s journey to his aunt’s home and back teaches the importance having courage, facing your fears, and following through on your commitments. At the end of the book, there is an inference about a bear (or bears) being shot and killed, which is fairly unexpected as Dalgliesh takes great care in establishing Jonathan’s love of animals and the respect he has for them. This last-minute act of violence may be disturbing to sensitive readers.

While I was researching quotes about courage and perseverance to use in this review, I came upon one by Japanese author Haruki Murakami that perfectly encapsulates what happens to our young hero: “When you come out of a storm you won’t be the same person that walked in. That’s what the storm is all about.” Jonathan’s mother would have never let her young son make the trek across Hemlock Mountain if she was certain there were bears (or we would hope so). Jonathan himself was worried about bears, although he’s not fully convinced that there are any either. But when the time comes for Jonathan to face his fears, he’s rational and clever and, as a result, finds that the boy who went up the mountain is very, very different from the young man who returned home.

Rating: 5/5

* Book cover image attributed to: www.abebooks.com

NEW!! Want to discuss this book with your homeschooler or classroom? There’s a FREE study guide available. Visit www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/The-Dusty-Jacket and download your free copy today!

Shadow of a Bull by Maia Wojciechowska (J)

Shadow of a Bull

Shadow of a Bull    

Maia Wojciechowska (Juvenile Fiction)

When Manolo was nine he became aware of three important facts in his life.  First: the older he became, the more he looked like his father. Second: he, Manolo Olivar, was a coward.  Third: everyone in the town of Arcangel expected him to grow up to be a famous bullfighter, like his father.

To be a bullfighter was to be revered for a bullfighter was a hero, a magician, and a killer of death.  In Arcangel, death came in the form of a bull and to conquer death brought glory to yourself, your family, and your country.  Manolo was the son of Juan Olivar, the greatest bullfighter in Spain.  Ever since his father’s death, everyone anxiously awaited the day when Manolo would take his father’s place and Spain would once again have a hero.  But unlike his father, Manolo’s future was not prophesied for greatness and he worried that his heart would never allow him to live up to the expectations of his town or the legacy left by his father.

Maia Wojciechowska’s Shadow of a Bull (winner of the 1965 Newberry Award) is a book brimming with valuable lessons and important messages of self-worth, self-confidence, and self-importance.  She encourages the reader to question the idea of heroes and those we choose to idolize—the celebrated sports figure or the wizened town physician—and she shows us the emotional and physical price of sacrificing your own future in order to carry on someone else’s.  She writes of life versus death, bravery versus fear, and a dream versus destiny.  It’s a lot to take in, but Wojciechowska lays out all of these issues as smoothly as a matador works his cape.

Shadow of a Bull is rich in its history and detail regarding the art of bullfighting.  Readers will learn the training involved and will be introduced to several Spanish terms (pronunciation guide and definitions are included at the back of the book).   It’s an effective primer for the sport that may test the patience of a few readers, but proves interesting nonetheless.  Above all else, Wojciechowska doesn’t let us forget that the heart of this book is young Manolo, a boy wishing to bring honor to his family by fulfilling a future that is beyond his desire or control.  He carries the hopes and dreams of an entire country on his very small shoulders and we feel the weight of this burden grow heavier as the day of his testing nears.  It’s a beautifully told coming-of-age story of a boy trying to discover his place in the world.

Walter M. Schirra, Sr.—a fighter pilot during World War I and father of Wally Schirra, the only astronaut to fly in the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs—once said, “You don’t raise heroes, you raise sons.  And if you treat them like sons, they’ll turn out to be heroes, even if it’s just in your own eyes.”  By being true to himself, Manolo found honor beyond the shadow of a bull and was able to become a hero in his own right.

Rating: 5/5

* Book cover image attributed to www.abebooks.com 

**Want more?  Visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thedustyjacket