Walls

The Wall by Eve Bunting (1990) is an emotionally powerful story. A young child and his father search for a name on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. “The wall is black and shiny as a mirror. In it I can see Dad and me. I can see the bare trees behind us and the dark, flying clouds.” They are looking for the name of his grandfather. When they find it, his father makes a pencil tracing of it and then stands there, head bowed, for a long time. A war veteran with both legs amputated, rolls up in a wheelchair and says hello. An older couple hug one another. A class of young children visit the wall with their teacher, unfamiliar with war. The child puts a photo of himself on the grass alongside small American flags, a teddy bear, and letters other visitors left. Illustrator Ronald Himler captures each scene in revelatory watercolor. I was crying before making it to the last page.

The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sís (2007) is an equally powerful picture book about the author’s childhood in Czechoslovakia. 
His autobiography is a history lesson. “1948. The Soviets take control of Czechoslovakia and close the borders.” Beside this text we see drawings of Sís as an infant and toddler. As a young child, he was required to learn lessons of Communism. He wears the red scarf of the Young Pioneers, waves a red flag, and draws tanks. Sís shares notes from his journal entries, drawings, and pictures from 1954 through 1977. We read about his discovery that life is much different on the other side of the wall. He dreams of freedom. “Sometimes dreams come true. On November 9, 1989, the wall fell.” The illustrations are by the author.

Old stone walls crisscross the region where I live. Some run alongside paved roads. Some hide within forests. While walking my dog, I once encountered a man stealing stones from such a wall. I was in a mood and confronted him, “Is that your wall!?” He said no. Neighborhoods near me are sliced up by fences that are essentially walls. Six-foot tall, white, vinyl fences keep children in and strangers out of back yards. My own picket fence provides visibility yet is intended to keep wildlife on one side and my dog on the other. I’ve heard much talk about building a wall to keep “illegal” people out. I haven’t heard any mention of how it also keeps us in.