Customer Reviews

The Door in the Wall

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

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.

The Door in the Wall wasn't that great of a book. The way the the characters talk is very confusing to the reader and can become annoying after a while. The story plot is hard to follow, even if you're a teenager. Overall, I think this book is so over-rated.

(...)The book was a basic book with a medieval background, it told of the many things going on, like the war between Ireland and England, and how there was the black plague forming everywhere, killing anybody unlucky enough to catch it. The story basically consists of the little boy, Robin, who has fallen ill due to some sort of disease, he believed it was the plague at first, but then realizes, that it was a different sickness, because it had made his legs useless, thus, the word "crook shanks", and as common knowledge tells us, he was useless to do anything, but he had a job, a job to become a knight, at his godfathers castle, for his father was a knight and as we all know, a knight's son must also become a knight. Robin was lucky enough to be taken in by a kind church, St. Mark's. There he meets a monk named Brother Luke, they become great friends, and Robin sends word to his father, and he goes on his great journey to Sir Peter De Lindsey's castle. They encounter many great problems in their journey, but he makes it safely to his castle, Robin tells Peter that he is useless and cannot do anything, and so Robin learns to do something, something that he had wanted to accomplish...

I think this book is one of the greater books I have read, it shows courage and honor, and how Robin was able to do anything despite his disabilities, and how he was able to do anything he wanted, as long as he put his mind to it. I this that this author was an excellent writer, because this book contain such great sentences, such as, "The calm sound of the peaceful lake was silent". Nevertheless, this book was based of a great plot and had a great background.

Despite how much I loved this book, there was also a catch, I didn't like this book because of how there was so much tragic death because of the black plague and how many people suffered "The Black Plague was everywhere." It makes the medieval times seem like a very horrible place in time where nothing was supposed to go right. Despite the minor issue, I still believe this is a book worth reading.

My favorite part in this book is how cunning Robin was in the situation of being robbed, he was sure not to make a sound, and made sure that he was able to warn Luke without making a sound, I would've enjoyed looking at the face of the thieves. Overall, this book was excellent, the medieval plot, and the great writings of the author. I think this book is a worthwhile book, and is worth reading, and you enjoy reading it over and over again.

In the book A Door in the Wall a young boy named Robin is left alone by his parents with their maid. Robin's father is a knight and has gone off to aid the King in the wars against the Scots. His mother has also left to help the Queen of England who has come down with the plague that is killing millions of people.
Robin was supposed to leave to become one of Sir Lindsay's Paiges but he contracted an ailment that left him without the use of his legs. So the housemaid was left to take care of Robin but Robin upsets her and she leaves. So as Robin contemplates what to do a monk named Brother Luke comes to take Robin to the Monastery.
Brother Luke carries Robin to the Monastery where he sits in Brother Luke's room for many long days. Than Brother Luke brings him some wood to carve. Robin carved many things like a boat and a cross to hang around his neck. Than Robin decides he wants to make some crutches to allow him to get around better. The work was long and tedious but Robin manages to get them finished.
Meanwhile, everyday Brother Luke would take Robin to the creek where he could swim and build up his arm muscles. Soon afterwards Robin gets a letter from his father telling him to go to Sir Lindsay's castle. So Robin, Brother Luke, and a minstrel named John Go-in-the-Wynd set out for the castle.
Shortly after arriving at the castle it was besieged by an invading Welsh army. Robin comes up with an ambitious plan to disguise himself as a poor shepherd and run for help.
Robin needed to swim across an icy creek but he made it and managed to get help from Sir Lindsay's brother. So Robin snuck back into the Castle and rung the bell which the signal for attack. The army swept into the castle and restored safety and peace to Sir Lindsay. Robin became a hero and his father and mother returned and where proud of him for his bravery and strong will.
Overall this was a great book with unique characters. The plot was exciting and I highly recommend this book to anyone.

In the book A Door in the Wall a young boy named Robin is left alone by his parents with their maid. Robin's father is a knight and has gone off to aid the King in the wars against the Scots. His mother has also left to help the Queen of England who has come down with the plague that is killing millions of people.
Robin was supposed to leave to become one of Sir Lindsay's Paiges but he contracted an ailment that left him without the use of his legs. So the housemaid was left to take care of Robin but Robin upsets her and she leaves. So as Robin contemplates what to do a monk named Brother Luke comes to take Robin to the Monastery.
Brother Luke carries Robin to the Monastery where he sits in Brother Luke's room for many long days. Than Brother Luke brings him some wood to carve. Robin carved many things like a boat and a cross to hang around his neck. Than Robin decides he wants to make some crutches to allow him to get around better. The work was long and tedious but Robin manages to get them finished.
Meanwhile, everyday Brother Luke would take Robin to the creek where he could swim and build up his arm muscles. Soon afterwards Robin gets a letter from his father telling him to go to Sir Lindsay's castle. So Robin, Brother Luke, and a minstrel named John Go-in-the-Wynd set out for the castle.
Shortly after arriving at the castle it was besieged by an invading Welsh army. Robin comes up with an ambitious plan to disguise himself as a poor shepherd and run for help.
Robin needed to swim across an icy creek but he made it and managed to get help from Sir Lindsay's brother. So Robin snuck back into the Castle and rung the bell which the signal for attack. The army swept into the castle and restored safety and peace to Sir Lindsay. Robin became a hero and his father and mother returned and where proud of him for his bravery and strong will.
Overall this was a great book with unique characters. The plot was exciting and I highly recommend this book to anyone.

I discovered this book at the library and liked it so much that I bought my own copy. I have since decided that it's best read aloud; there are pleasant subtlties of the rhythm and consonance that I missed in my first quick (and silent) reading. Also, if you're reading aloud, you can read it to younger children than I would attempt as an independently read chapter book. Reading aloud solves some of the language challenges.

When I think about this book, I remember the timelessness of the "learning about yourself" and "doing your best" themes. I remember the high proportion of adults who are helpful and kind -- even the military invaders in this book are kind to children -- and the great number of usually forgotten people who served the public and their country through the social safety net provided by the medieval church. I think about the author's beautiful illustrations and descriptions of people and places in this medieval, 1300s setting.

What struck me as odd a few minutes ago is that I don't ever think about the fact that the central character of this book is physically disabled, and how accepted this is by all of the characters in the book. This is particularly unusual because the book was written more than half a century ago about a time that is more than half a millenium ago, so it well predates the modern sense of "political correctness" or social support for people with disabilities.

The disability drives the plot and the protagonist's character development in some respects, but it's really not dwelt on -- the disability is a fact, and what remains is not to point out how special he is or what noble character he was endowed with, but to see how a pretty average child adapts to life as it is, instead of life as he expected.

Since so many modern books that cross my desk are filled with petty junior-high boy-girl interactions, or write off *all* of the adults as uncaring or useless (or worse), I have particularly enjoyed reading this uplifting book.

All of the characters believe in working persistently towards your goals and doing your best. Furthermore, in an age of preternaturally precocious protagonists who do daring things but learn very little, Robin has clear character flaws -- he even throws temper tantrums early in the book -- and you can see him growing up as the chapters go by. Problems are solved, skills are developed, and the solution to the castle's invasion difficulty and Robin's future is resolved in the end.

I know that a study guide is available for this book, but I don't know if "The Door in the Wall" is widely used in schools. It's length (a little to the short side) is a good recommendation, and it's positive, inclusion-oriented attitude towards people with disabilities also speaks well of it. Despite the number of pages spent on military actions, it's really a non-violent book, which will appeal to many parents. (But fewer boys: it's not gross enough.)

However, despite these points in its favor, in parts of modern America --

(here in California, we live under the shadow of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals -- the fine folks who said that a (apparently non-custodial) father could force the school to drop "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance so that his (apparently church-going) daughter wouldn't hear those words each day)

-- I'm not sure I'd try this book as required reading in a public school, because the characters are shown praying, and the medieval church is portrayed in a clearly positive fashion.

I just finished reading this book aloud to my son tonight. We both loved it. When I first started it, I thought he might quickly lose interest, but he surprised me. And this kid is NOT a mellow child, he's as rambunctious as they come. This book is beautiful in every way. Its focus on virtue is inspiring to both young and old, and its positive portrayal of religion and the Church in everyday life teaches a great lesson. Children ought to be regularly exposed to challenging books and language while they are young; then we might have far fewer "it was boring" complaints when they reached sixth grade. If you're a little weary of all the insipid children's books out there and wish to set your own children's minds on more noble things, read this book aloud and allow its beauty to refresh their (and your) souls.

This book has a very good lesson to be learned, but I found the book very hard to follow and stay intrested. I found my mind wandering because of the lack of action and diffult foriegn words. I wouldn't have picked to have read this book myself (school assignment) but after i suffered through the boredom of reading it, I found that the moral of the story is a good one to learn, be thankful for what you have and work with it!

Robin is the son of a noble who has always been told what is expected of him as a future knight. But he one day falls ill and loses the use of his legs. As the story begins, he had given up all hope of being worthy of anything. With the plague claiming his servants one by one, Robin is abandoned, until a kindly monk named Brother Luke comes to the manor and takes Robin to the Hospice of St. Mark. There, Robin is fed, cared for, and educated. He learns to swim, whittle, read and write, and attends holy ceremonies. While doing this, he gains strength, self-confidence, and friends.

This book is a good read because the characters and plot are well developed. The story takes place in Medieval Europe and you can tell that the author has researched these times carefully. She provides full detail about the sights and sounds of medieval life. In doing so, she uses difficult vocabulary based on the words that were used then. This makes the book a bit harder to read, and therefore appropriate for the older middle school student and above, especially those who like a detailed setting.

I felt the book lacked any good action. The story is told only through Robin's point of view, which limits your knowledge of what's going on. You canï¿t see what Brother Luke or other characters are thinking. When the battle begins, Robin is in the church belfry and not on the field fighting, so you donï¿t really know whatï¿s happening where the action is. There seemed to be no real climax even as the conflict is resolved. However, the story does carry an inspirational message, as Robin learns that he doesnï¿t need the use of his legs to be a hero.

This the worst book i have ever read. if you like no story line no action and no climax this is the book for you.everyone else it is a waste of time.