It’s the first day of school at Wee Ville Elementary School and all the students are excited to start a new year. Along with ‘reading, writing and arithmetic’, the students are about to meet a very special young man with a truly amazing and very positive attitude that will change them all.
As the new school year begins, the children of Mrs. Fernandes’ class are eager to get started and are happily smiling and chatting as they pick out their new desks. As the youngsters settle in, her teacher welcomes another student who is a little late for school. Lady. Fernandes introduces her students to Roland Faissett, a boy disguised as a magician, with a cap and a magic crystal ball.
Slowly he crossed the room.
Dress dragging on the floor.
He sews a seat that was alone
Right next to the exit gate.
Roland seems to be a quiet boy, but soon the class is busy with their first assignment: drawing a picture of something they did on summer vacation and forget about the shy boy. It’s finally lunch time and the students eagerly head to the cafeteria. While there, Caitlin, another of Mrs. Fernandes’ students, notices that Roland is missing from lunch. Her teacher explains that he had an appointment and that he would return the next day.
The next day, the students in Ms. Fernandes’ class are happy to see that the shy Roland has returned, still in his magician outfit. The day quickly progresses to recess when the students begin to question the young wizard about his outfit. He explains that the hospital nurses made the costume and gave him the crystal ball so he could do magic and get better. Roland’s new friends are curious, so the boy removes his hat and shows his bald head. He explains that “I had treatments called chemotherapy because my blood is sick” and that his crystal ball allows him to see the future of his healthy self which helps him get better. Roland’s new friends are happy to know that Roland is done with his treatments and for Halloween, they all do something very special that brings the whole class together to cheer on Roland and his recovery.
Roland Faissett and The Wizards of Wee Ville is a moving story that’s perfect for sharing with both young people facing medical challenges and their friends who may not understand what’s going on. The story does not focus on Roland’s chemotherapy or other challenges, but on how the other students react and how they help their new friend. They see a child dressed differently and instead of teasing him, they ask questions out of curiosity. In fact, even the boy’s name, Roland Faissett (roll and face it), is a play on words that shows the amazing resilience of boys. The watercolor illustrations are beautiful and add a nice soft touch to the story.