A Hole in the Wall

by Hans Wilhelm

Overview

Dog looks through a hole in the wall and sees another dog. But when warthog looks, he sees something very different. This Level D book is perfect for new readers.

Dog can't wait to tell Warthog, Lion, and Elephant about the other dog he saw.  But when the other animals look through the hole, none of them see the same thing.  They argue, because each animal is sure the others are wrong.  But it turns out the hole isn't a hole at all—it's a mirror!

This funny adaptation of Mark Twain's A Fable is simple enough for the youngest readers, but clever and funny enough for everyone to enjoy—and at the end, friendship prevails.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823445226
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	11/12/2019
Series:	I Like to Read Series
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,237,338
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 8.80(h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Hans Wilhelm is an author and illustrator of many books for children. His books have been translated into more than twenty languages and are popular worldwide. Born in Bremen, Germany, Hans lived in Africa before moving to the United States. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, who is also an artist. A Hole in the Wall was inspired by "A Fable," by Mark Twain.

Editorial Reviews

11/30/2015
In a story inspired by Mark Twain’s “A Fable,” which is reprinted at the end of the book, a dog peers into a hole in a wall and spies another dog. (Unlike the dog, readers will instantly recognize that the hole is actually a mirror.) The dog tells his friends—a warthog, lion, and elephant—about what he has seen, prompting the animals to check out the hole for themselves. Wilhelm (Look Who’s Peeking!) creates a pattern that invites children to chime in as the animals report their findings: “The dog is wrong. I saw a warthog,” says the warthog. When these conflicting discoveries cause a rift (“The friends were mad”), the animals stomp off together to visit the hole and, in viewing all of their reflections, “Everyone was happy because everyone was right!” The language may be simple, but Wilhelm’s loosely outlined cartoon animals never lack for emotions, their exaggerated facial expressions highlighting their curiosity, skepticism, anger, and eventual delight. It’s an amusing addition to the bookshelf of stories that let children feel smarter than the characters they are reading about. Ages 4–8. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

"The type is large and bold and uses color to highlight various words . . . A deceptively subtle thought-provoker for preschoolers."—Kirkus Reviews
 
"The language may be simple, but Wilhelm's loosely outlined cartoon animals never lack for emotions, their exaggerated facial expressions highlighting their curiosity, skepticism, anger, and eventual delight. It's an amusing addition to the bookshelf of stories that let children feel smarter than the characters they are reading about."—Publishers Weekly
 
"A fun story about self-perception, truth, and imagination; a great choice to act out with stuffed animals and a mirror."—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

01/01/2016
PreS-Gr 2—When four animals take turns peeking inside a hole, they see animals that look like them. The African dog tells the others, "I saw a hole with a dog." The dialogue is repetitive as each animal declares that the speaker is wrong. Certain of what they saw, the friends allow their tempers to flare, and they stop talking. After a short silence, they march over to the hole to find out who is telling the truth. When all four see themselves, they all smile. Wilhelm's last spread pans back so the reader can see the hole from every side. It's here we see the hole is really a mirror being held up by a nail in the wall. The story that inspired this book ("A Fable" by Mark Twain) is included on the last three pages of the book. Older children may understand the moral as told by the cat. VERDICT A fun story about self-perception, truth, and imagination; a great choice to act out with stuffed animals and a mirror.—Tanya Boudreau, Cold Lake Public Library, AB, Canada

School Library Journal

2015-11-03
Four round and rubbery cartoon African animals—a wild dog, a warthog, a lion, and an elephant—find what seems to be a hole in the wall. Round-eyed with excitement, each runs back to its fellows to report that the previous observer was wrong about what it observed. The dog finds the hole first: he sees a dog in it. The warthog sees a warthog, and so on. Alert children will catch on to this from the first image. (Spoiler alert: it's a mirror.) At the end, when all four buddies (only the elephant is tagged as female) realize they are all correct and view themselves together in the mirror, "Everyone was happy because everyone was right!" The type is large and bold and uses color to highlight various words; all the colors have a smooth and slick feel to them. The story is based on a Mark Twain fable, which is reproduced in all of its fustian glory in three pages of text at the end. The moral of that tale is actually somewhat different from Wilhelm's version and will prepare young readers for deconstructionist literary criticism in their later years, but the whole makes a fairly good read-aloud with very few words. A deceptively subtle thought-provoker for preschoolers. (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews

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