The Walk – Lindsey McDivittLindsey McDivitt
The Walk; written by Winsome Bingham; illustrated by E.B. Lewis. (Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2023)
Age Positive picture book review. Guest post by Marsha Weiner
Wisdom.
What is it?
Pondering the nature of wisdom has been fodder for theological and scientific inquiry.
There is agreement that:
- Wisdom comes with age, though not all older people are wise.
- Wisdom is one of those instances whereby, you know it when you see it.
- Wisdom is manifested when knowledge, obtained from experience, is combined with judgement and put into action.
The Walk is about wisdom in action transmitted across generations. About standing up for what we believe in. And looking out for our community and our neighbors.
The story is told by a young African American girl whose Granny takes her on a walk. It’s not an ordinary walk- it’s The Walk. The child doesn’t know where they are walking to, but her Granny gracefully assures her, “You’ll see. And there’s a few treasured souls coming too.”
They pack a backpack with water and sandwiches and then they “walk on.”
Stopping and gathering people at their homes, at the barber shop and in other local stores, their group grows to include people of all ages including other children, and folks of different backgrounds. In the girl’s eyes they have become “a sea of faces swimming upstream like a school of fish; traveling in a group, talking like family, together a community.”
The realistic watercolor illustrations are breezy and flooded with light. Some older adults are shown using walkers, Granny uses a cane, some in their group come in their work aprons and uniforms; some people are holding hands. Everyone’s head is held high as they “walk on.”
True to her age our narrator asks the proverbial “are we there yet?” as they make their way to the polling site to vote, which just happens to be her school.
Explaining that the school is closed so that the community can vote, Granny lovingly folds into her explanation history and politics, and well-earned pride, as she carefully transmits what it feels like to have the courage of one’s convictions, “The walk wasn’t always this long, folks keep making it longer. They don’t want us to say what we have to say. That’s why we have to show up, show out, and show them.”
Staying at her grandmother’s side our young narrator witnesses her Granny filling out the ballot, and then she asks an appropriate question for a child her age, “Why do people vote?”
Granny’s response is wisdom personified, “For HOPE, baby. It’s how we stand up and say what’s on our minds.”
Talking with kids about the news of the day:
Transmit • Protect • Embody
Steering the young people in your life through the news and important issues of the day so they can responsibly participate in civic life takes information, commitment and love. Basic principles can give you confidence:
- Find out what the child already knows
- Answer questions honestly and concisely
- Keep tabs on their social media activities and don’t hesitate to set limits
- Validate their feelings
- Share your feelings and experiences.
There are many resources to give further guidance so that you, too, can be an example of wisdom in action, across the generations.
Here are a just a few:
Now is a Good Time to Talk Kids About Civics
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