Weslandia

I really enjoyed Weslandia, written by Paul Fleischman and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes. Sometimes I have trouble deciding how to respond to a book, but not this one! By the end of it, I had used about 20 post-it notes to comment on different things. I felt like I could really relate to a lot of Wes’ traits. Although I probably wouldn’t take it as far as Wes did, as a child I might have created my own land where I could be in charge. I felt such a triumph for Wes when the other kids came to Weslandia and he allowed them to use his mortar and they bought the suntan lotion/mosquito repellant from him.

I was immediately drawn into the book by Wes’ parents saying that he was unhappy and didn’t fit in. I wondered…what’s wrong with this kid? I had to keep reading this story to find out. I thought it was so sad that Wes’ parents of all people would say that about him, but it was his own fault for listening in on their conversation. That’s something I would have done as a child; I used to always listen in on my mother’s phone conversations. When Wes was coming up with his idea for his summer project, I was reminded of what I used to do during the summer. One year, I read a book about a woman who really liked to garden, so I decided to have my own herb garden. It didn’t work out quite as well as Wes’ garden and my parents ended up taking it over.

Wes’ idea to wait and see what kind of seeds the wind carried his way was really a neat idea. I wonder what would happen if I did that? It probably wouldn’t turn out as well as Wes’ did, but it would be a fun idea.

Hawkes’ pictures added so much to the text. They are all full bleed pictures, painted in bold, natural colors to show Wes’ outdoor civilization. His pictures made Westlandia look like such a fun and peaceful place to be. For example, a parrot and other exotic birds and snakes appear in the flowers as they grow, setting Weslandia apart from the rest of the neighborhood. It makes Weslandia appear different since he doesn’t know what the plants are and he can’t find them in a plant book. I really enjoyed looking at the surprised and jealous expressions on the other kids’ faces. Through the pictures I could almost tell exactly what they were thinking. I especially enjoyed the picture with the aerial view showing Wes and his parents in Weslandia in the middle of the neighborhood. Just look at all those identical houses and then look at Westlandia, different and exotic.

It was great that the plants are different, just like Wes, but that they are wonderful to eat. Even though he is different from the other kids, he is no better or worse than they are. That is such a great message to tell kids. I was so glad that he was nice to the other kids and designed games to play with them even after they were mean to him. This just goes to show that you have to treat others like you want them to treat you.