Wishes
Written by Muon Thi Van│Illustrated by Victo Ngai
Verdict: ✦✦✦✦✧
Gorgeous illustrations by Victor Ngai and a subtle-yet-hopeful story of emigration invite thoughtful discussions and make this a great choice for school libraries and collections, as well as for family reading.
What is it about:
This quiet, breathtakingly illustrated picture book is told from the perspective of the objects in a little girl's life. She and her family have to leave their home and loved ones. Each object she encounters has a wish to make her trip better. However, the trip is hard, and the wishes are not fulfilled until the end. The story is told in very few words. Some pages have no words at all, only Nag’s expressive, swooping illustrations. This story is based on true events in the author's family.
Our take:
This is less a read-aloud book than a discussion book to be savored slowly. A quiet book. A lingering-over book. A think-about book. Every page has things to notice and talk about. Questions could come in waves. Or feelings could become tumultuous. Many "what if" scenarios are suggested. Because of the beautiful and narrative pictures, children will want this book just to look at by themselves. We highly reccomend the art quality in shaping the child's eye for beauty and color and composition. The story has a difficult theme, but because life is often difficult, it is worth examining such ideas with children, when they are safe, and can form ideas with guidance in how to conduct themselves before facing hardships. Most may never face this level of difficulty, but seeing a good way to go through such times can help in less severe hard times. It can also show children that some people do go through very hard things and what they might feel for that person.
Perfect for:
Because the story is told more in pictures than in words, children will need to see the pages quite closely, making it less suitable for classrooms. Because so many questions will be raised, it is perfect for multiple readings, with thinking time between. This is an excellent story for young readers in the midst of moving, change, or uncertainty. It is good for discussions about courage, moving forward, optimism, perseverence, and being thankful for whatever one has. If a child is timid, this story can help in gentle guidance to being a little bit more brave, or looking for good things in hard times. If a child is very bold, this story can help show a need for prudence. This story is probably a better fit for a child who has some emotional stability or other anchors in his or her life.
Conversation starters:
Why did each object make its wish? Did it get its wish?
Why do people do things in the night sometimes? When is that good? When is it not good?
When do you wish the clock would slow down?
When do you wish a path or road was shorter? or longer?
What do you like to take on a trip? Why?
When things are scary, what should we do?
When you want to quit, what can you do instead?
How far away from home have you been? Were you happy to go home?
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