The Great Wall Of China (Aladdin Picture Books) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "About twenty-two hundred years ago, King Cheng of Ch'in conquered the kingdoms of Han, Sung, Yen, Yueh, Ch'i, Chou, Chao, Ch'u, Wei, Wey, Wu, and..." (more)
Key Phrases: Grand General Meng Tian

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Dramatic gray-toned artwork illustrates a tale about the construction of one of the seven wonders of the world. Ages 6-10.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6 Awe-inspiring, impressive, black and gray illustrations set the tone for this history of the building of the Great Wall of China. These large, detailed double-spreads of the building of the Wall and of the people have a rough look entirely suitable to the subject. The story is simply told and will interest children. The focus of the book is Ch'in Shih Huang Ti and the work that went on from 221 to 210 b.c. The fact that Ming emperors made improvements from the 14th to 17th Centuries is mentioned on the last page; these additions appear on a map that precedes the text. Each page is captioned in Chinese characters that are translated at the end of the book. Big Bird in China (Random, 1983) by Jon Stone gives good photographic coverage of the Wall but no history. An outstanding example of nonfiction for young children. Gerri Young, Elementary School Libraries, Fort Nelson, B.C., Canada
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9-12
  
• Paperback: 32 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin (August 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689801785
• ISBN-13: 978-0689801785
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.2 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #94,516 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The beautiful pictures illustrate this cultural wonder!, April 1, 2000

By A Customer

Leonard Everett Fisher has created such a beautiful set of portraits of this ancient and mysterious culture. My elementary students laughed in delight of the rhythmical musings of the great emperor and were able to remain focused during the entire story. The story as written by Mr. Fisher lent itself to further discussions about the implications of building the Great Wall, including a cost-benefit analysis of the labor lost in constructing such a feat of wonder! I highly recommend this book to anyone for its illustrous drawings and the language chosen to convey this important part of human history.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars READ THIS ONE BEFORE YOU READ IT TO THE LITTLE ONES, November 24, 2008

By	D. Blankenship (The Ozarks) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The Great Wall of China by Leonard Everett Fisher falls into a rather odd category. Parents should be aware of the content of this particular work before they make the purchase. I personally liked the work and used this work to lead a discussion with a group of children age 12 and 13. While the book is meant for children younger, it brings out aspects of the building of this wall that I personally feel may not be suitable for the very young. (Yes, I realize the reading recommendation on this one is 9-12, but even so, it is normally filled with books for a much younger age and can be found in many second grade library shelves. Personally, I think that 9 years old is stretching it a bit, especially if there is not an adult moderator present).

There is the aspect of violence. The book does depict people being whipped by soldiers as they are forced into virtual slave labor and it depicts the agony on their faces as they are ripped from the arms of their families and loved ones. The story tells us that those who tried to run away from the project, or complained a lot, were buried alive in this wall. The pictures are in dark, somber tones and the entire book has a rather grim overall feeling.

Now I am a strong believer in telling children the facts of life about the world around them, in particular when it comes to history; but also strongly feel that there is a time and place and appropriate intellectual and physical age that children should be exposed to the entire truth. The age group that this work is targeted for, in my opinion, is a bit young. Being buried alive is not something I want a six or seven year old child going to bed at night worried about.

The drawings in this work are powerful, I will grant you that. I personally liked them, but then again, I am an old man and have seen much, much worse. The story is well told, although it does leave some major historical facts out...playing a bit loose with time elements and the like. When using this book to lead the discussion, I found myself time and again having to add information or explain facts that I should not have had to do.

As I said, children need to learn about such things, it is extremely important they not get a diet of sugar coated history as we have been down that road and have found it does not work very well. I peeve is with the age appropriateness of this work and not the artistic quality.

On the other hand, making decisions of this sort is the responsibility of each parent; they know their kids the best and know what they can and should be able to handle. I just feel that the parent should know what they are getting when they purchase this one.

I am giving this one three stars even though artistically it is probably worth more. The writing is good, but as I indicated, it leaves much out. I do feel as long as this subject is being brought up, the brutality of the whole situation should be examined more closely and the age recommendation should be jacked-up quite a bit. Parents should certainly review this one before they read it to their very young.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not good for teaching either!, January 28, 2006

By	Grandma "Robin" (NH, USA) - See all my reviews

If I could give this book a zero instead of a 1 I would happily do so. It is a rare thing that we buy a book so bad that I would happily return it, were that not such a hassle. This is one of the few.

Fisher's "The Great Wall of China" is a very poorly done book. Rather than present a true history of the wall, Fisher invents a dialogue, one that is full of anger. The illustrations are extremely dark. The emperor looks like Mr. T, the people's expressions odd at best. To make already bad matters worse, one illustration shows wall-builders being whipped. On the same page, Fisher's states: "Workers who complained or who ran away were caught and buried alive."

Absolutely unsuitable for children of any age with virtually no redeeming value!