The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain

The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain

By: Peter Sis

Grades 3-5

AUTOBIOGRAPHY

This book was a great book and very heart wrenching. The author in this book is clearly sharing with his readers what life was like in Prague, Czechoslovakia when he was growing up. It is basically representing what communism was like during that time period. It shows that communism was all about controlling every little detail in life and he clearly represents this in his writing. This book shows that life under a totalitarian regime is horrible and can try to hold people back but it also shows that this type of regime can discourage creativity but not kill it. Sis is a prime example someone young during this time period who had a natural desire to be free and expressed himself through his creativity. I think this book is a great book to include in the classroom especially if you are covering communism. This is great introduction to someone who lived during this period and show what they went through. I feel this book is very informational especially the journal entries. This book is different in dealing with the set up also. It has journal entries on some pages, very short sentences on others,and pictures on just other pages. I think it is great to incorporate different books that are not all the classic way!