Book Review of "The Whisper of Glocken" by Carol Kendall

Book Review of “The Whisper of Glocken” by Carol Kendall.

This book is the magnificent sequel to “The Gammage Cup”, (a book I previously posted a review about.) Once a again, the villages of the unobtrusive race of the Minnipins are in danger. This time it is not from enemies but from flood waters. It is deduced that the tunnel in the mountains from which the river usually flows has been somehow blocked. The duty of investigating the tunnel falls to the rather reluctant Glocken and a group of ordinary folk whom he would never willingly have chosen as friends, but whom circumstances will shape into some of his closest comrades. The book abounds with danger, narrow scrapes, and wonderful themes.

The theme of both Kendall’s novels of the Minnipins is that heroes are not made of extraordinary stuff. Typically, they don’t even choose the position of heroism. Also, bravery is not a synonym for fearlessness. A hero is an ordinary person who, though deathly afraid, does not choose to run from his fears.

Story Starter Ideas:

• Write a story about a person or a group of people who have the job of saving the lives of other people from some mortal danger thrust upon them. What makes these people heroes?  
• Write a story about an ordinary person who has to face his or her fears. Perhaps write a non-fiction account of yourself in a circumstance like this.