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Title: The Door in the Wall (Yearling Newbery) by Marguerite De Angeli ISBN: 0-440-40283-2 Publisher: Yearling Books Pub. Date: 01 August, 1990 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $5.50 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.52 (44 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A DOOR TO SELF-DISCOVERY
Comment: It is unusual to find an example of YA literature which is set in the Middle Ages and yet is not Time Travel. De Angeli's illustrations add much to the authentic flavor and general understanding of the times. This story relates the ageless conflict between the Welsh and the English.
Ten-year-old Robin, the son of knight, contracts polio (not so named) during London's Plague years. Abandoned in error and haste, he is rescued by a kindly monk who takes him to his monastery to recover--both his health and his social skills. He learns woodcarving and patience, which are compensations for his new crutches and appellation: Sir Crookshanks.
Ultimately Robin helps save the town and castle where he is sent to serve as a page, earning both the King's gratitude and his parents' amazed pride. The author casually inserts much historical detail and interesting information, so that elementary readers learn about the Middle Ages without quite realizing it. An entertaining tale, with a good moral: "Thou hast only to follow the wall far enough and there will be a door in it."
Rating: 4
Summary: Better as time went on
Comment: I remember reading this book ages ago, and I hated. I thought it dated and dull, with its archaic language and details about medieval life. Now, after years of studying mythology, including the Prose Edda, I can better appreciate it. It's not a GREAT book, but it is a good one.
Robin is the son of a knight, destined to become a knight one day himself - until he falls ill and loses the use of his legs. The plague is ravaging medieval England, and it claims several of the servants who were caring for him. Robin is rescued by a kindly monk, Brother Luke, who takes the crippled boy to a local monastary and patiently cares for him there. Under Luke's guidance, Robin learns how to swim, read, whittle, and how to become a humbler person rather than the rather snobby noble boy that he once was.
But all is not well in England. Robin must "open a door in the wall" -- the walls that hemmed him in when he lost the use of his legs -- and discover that you don't necessarily have to be a knight to serve your king and country.
This is not a 9-12 book. Oh, not because of any objectionable content or attitudes, but simply because the, majority of 9-12 children will be bored witless by it. It's better suited to young adults who can handle the gradual pacing, softened archaic language (a fair number of twills, thous, amisses, and arts) and virtually actionless plot. As a result, "Door in the Wall" resembles a a slice of real life from the POV of a crippled boy rather than a fictional story. Such gruesome details as the plague and the violence of war are smudged out, by the way.
It seems a lot longer than its 120 pages. Ignore the silly cover art, the characters aren't like that at all; the interior illustrations are soft and realistic. de Angeli's writing lacks detail much of the time, but her dialogue is well-scripted. Robin's responses to the loss of his legs, his plans, and fear of his father's disappointment are perfectly done. He isn't a perfect lead character; he gets irrational, angry, snobby - but overcomes all of them. Brother Luke seems a little too perfect at times, but is also a good character. So, for that matter, is minstrel John-go-in-the-Wynd. (Yes, this book has those delightful Middle-Ages names based on the job, physical characteristics or past experience)
As for complaints about this book: Note that virtually all of them say that it was a schoolwork book; once again, we have disgruntled students seeking "revenge" on a non-fluff book that they had to read. This is not a book that should be assigned, but a book that should be selected individually. Don't read it just because it's a Newbery, read it if you can handle it!
In short, I recommend this book -- but not to everyone...it if you love to read, and if you enjoy a story where characters are emphasized over action.
Rating: 2
Summary: Not What I Had Hoped
Comment: While I am a lover of reading and especially Newbery literature, I was disappointingly bored. I appreciated the basic storyline, how a crippled boy becomes stronger with the help of a community of monks who teach him patience and work ethic. I also love the theme that there is always a door in the wall if you look hard enough, and that anyone can be a hero. However, the story moved too slowly and the language made me sleepy, despite my appreciation for medieval literature. This is definitely not a book I can see many children enjoying, certainly not my own class of 6th grade students.
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Title: Adam of the Road (Puffin Newberry Library) by Elizabeth Gray Vining, Robert Lawson, Elizabeth Janet Gray ISBN: 014032464X Publisher: Puffin Pub. Date: November, 1987 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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Title: The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare ISBN: 0395137195 Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Co Pub. Date: 01 September, 1997 List Price(USD): $6.95 |
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Title: The Trumpeter of Krakow by Janina Domanska, Eric P. Kelly ISBN: 0689715714 Publisher: Simon Pulse Pub. Date: 01 April, 1992 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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Title: The Door in the Wall Study Guide by Andrew Clausen ISBN: 1586091298 Publisher: Progeny Press Pub. Date: 01 August, 1993 List Price(USD): $14.99 |
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Title: The White Stag by Kate Seredy ISBN: 0140312587 Publisher: Puffin Pub. Date: October, 1979 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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