{"id":3201,"date":"2013-04-03T09:52:58","date_gmt":"2013-04-03T01:52:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/2013\/04\/03\/zhui_zhu_meng_20130403\/"},"modified":"2013-04-03T09:52:58","modified_gmt":"2013-04-03T01:52:58","slug":"zhui_zhu_meng_20130403","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/en\/2013\/04\/03\/zhui_zhu_meng_20130403\/","title":{"rendered":"Chas\u00ading Dreams is Root\u00aded in the Heart (Reflec\u00adtions on Read\u00ading \u201cMe\u2026Jane\u201d)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" name=\"image_operate_92651364954794007\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b295f7cb8.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto; display: block;\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\"><\/a>
\n   
\nUnlike typ\u00adi\u00adcal pic\u00adture books, \u201cMe\u2026Jane\u201d tells a true sto\u00adry. Jane Goodall, the pro\u00adtag\u00ado\u00adnist, was a renowned wildlife biol\u00ado\u00adgist and a high\u00adly active con\u00adser\u00adva\u00adtion\u00adist. Her Roots & Shoots pro\u00adgram, one of the most active envi\u00adron\u00admen\u00adtal edu\u00adca\u00adtion pro\u00adgrams for youth, remains a major focus. Of course, her sto\u00adry with chim\u00adpanzees is of pri\u00adma\u00adry inter\u00adest. This pic\u00adture book recounts her child\u00adhood, and the author seems to be try\u00ading to uncov\u00ader the sto\u00adry of a remark\u00adable woman.<\/p>\n

   
\nHow\u00adev\u00ader, this is a seem\u00ading\u00adly sim\u00adple sto\u00adry, and read\u00aders seek\u00ading the \u201cmatu\u00adri\u00adty of a great man\u201d may be some\u00adwhat dis\u00adap\u00adpoint\u00aded. What they see is lit\u00adtle more than the dai\u00adly activ\u00adi\u00adties of a cute lit\u00adtle girl and her toy chim\u00adpanzee. She wan\u00adders the out\u00addoors, curi\u00adous about every\u00adthing she sees, even sneak\u00ading into a chick\u00aden coop to watch the hens lay eggs. She reads and draws, climbs a tree and sits in med\u00adi\u00adta\u00adtion, her imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion run\u00adning wild, dream\u00ading of trav\u00adel\u00ading to Africa like Tarzan\u2026 until one day, her dream comes true. The final pho\u00adto, show\u00ading an adult Jane reach\u00ading out to touch a baby chim\u00adpanzee, is tru\u00adly heart\u00adwarm\u00ading. But many read\u00aders may not under\u00adstand how tru\u00adly pow\u00ader\u00adful this scene is. Before Jane Goodall, it was rare for humans and chim\u00adpanzees to come with\u00adin 100 meters of each oth\u00ader nat\u00adu\u00adral\u00adly. Yet, in this image, they inter\u00adact nat\u00adu\u00adral\u00adly, as if they were tru\u00adly human.<\/p>\n

\n   
\nBut what kind of force dri\u00adves that love\u00adly lit\u00adtle girl to pur\u00adsue her dreams?<\/p>\n

   
\nAlmost every read\u00ader will agree that this is a delight\u00adful pic\u00adture book, with con\u00adcise text and warm col\u00adors. The lit\u00adtle girl and chim\u00adpanzee are both adorably drawn, as are the imag\u00adi\u00adnary African ani\u00admals that appear lat\u00ader. Jane undoubt\u00aded\u00adly came from a lov\u00ading fam\u00adi\u00adly and spent an inno\u00adcent child\u00adhood in the pris\u00adtine nat\u00adur\u00adal coun\u00adtry\u00adside of Eng\u00adland. Her fam\u00adi\u00adly isn\u2019t depict\u00aded in this pic\u00adture book, yet their pres\u00adence is pal\u00adpa\u00adble. For exam\u00adple, when Jane first men\u00adtions her toy chim\u00adpanzee, we see her tak\u00ading Jubilee from an adult\u2019s hands, clear\u00adly her father\u2019s. This moment marked the begin\u00adning of her life\u00adlong dream. And then there\u2019s the tree named Beech, a birth\u00adday present from her grand\u00admoth\u00ader when she was ten years old.<\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"437\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b3280e8f9.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"490\"><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"437\" name=\"image_operate_17721364954798277\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b32be1803.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"490\"><\/a><\/p>\n

   
\nAs for her adven\u00adture in the chick\u00aden coop, the sto\u00adry behind it is even more fas\u00adci\u00adnat\u00ading. She was only five years old at the time, and to observe how eggs were laid, she spent hours in the incred\u00adi\u00adbly hot chick\u00aden coop. But what\u2019s most aston\u00adish\u00ading is the adults\u2019 atti\u00adtude: after a five-year-old girl \u201cdis\u00adap\u00adpeared\u201d for hours, her moth\u00ader did\u00adn\u2019t call the police! And when she found out lat\u00ader, she did\u00adn\u2019t blame her at all, but instead praised her pro\u00adfuse\u00adly. Twen\u00adty years lat\u00ader, this remark\u00adable moth\u00ader accom\u00adpa\u00adnied her daugh\u00adter to her first camp in Gombe, Africa, encour\u00adag\u00ading her to stay there and observe chim\u00adpanzees. But those sto\u00adries will be found in her auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy.<\/p>\n

   
\nThe author and artist of this book, Patrick McDon\u00adnell, is also a man with a remark\u00adable sto\u00adry. He is a renowned Amer\u00adi\u00adcan car\u00adtoon\u00adist, best known for his com\u00adic strip, MUTTS, which appeared in count\u00adless news\u00adpa\u00adpers and mag\u00ada\u00adzines. Charles Schulz, the cre\u00adator of the Peanuts com\u00adic strip, hailed it as \u201cone of the best com\u00adic strips ever cre\u00adat\u00aded.\u201d The MUTTS char\u00adac\u00adters, Earl the dog and Mooch the cat, are both hilar\u00adi\u00adous and thought-pro\u00advok\u00ading. Patrick blends his love of ani\u00admals with a Zen-like phi\u00adlos\u00ado\u00adphy in his comics, believ\u00ading that the great\u00adest ben\u00ade\u00adfit of comics in mod\u00adern soci\u00adety is that they help peo\u00adple slow down. Not sur\u00adpris\u00ading\u00adly, he also serves on the boards of the Humane Soci\u00adety of the Unit\u00aded States and the Ani\u00admal Wel\u00adfare Fund. In 2009, he col\u00adlab\u00ado\u00adrat\u00aded with renowned spir\u00adi\u00adtu\u00adal teacher Eck\u00adhart Tolle (author of The Pow\u00ader of Now) on the book Guardians, which explores the insights that ani\u00admals, par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly pet dogs, offer us about human exis\u00adtence: ani\u00admals may very well be our guardians.<\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"500\" name=\"image_operate_77681364954805631\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b4126ada7.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"426\"><\/a>Illus\u00adtra\u00adtion of \u201cGuardians\u201d<\/p>\n

   
\nIt\u2019s nat\u00adur\u00adal and per\u00adfect for a car\u00adtoon\u00adist who loves ani\u00admals to draw a love\u00adly pic\u00adture book about a sci\u00aden\u00adtist who advo\u00adcates for pro\u00adtect\u00ading wildlife and help\u00ading to make the earth a bet\u00adter place.<\/p>\n

   
\nPatrick has always admired Jane Goodall and paid trib\u00adute to her in a MUTTS car\u00adtoon. Earl, the dog in the car\u00adtoon, claims to some\u00adtimes suf\u00adfer from \u201clove fatigue,\u201d but has found a cure: fre\u00adquent\u00adly look\u00ading at Jane\u2019s auto\u00adgraphed pho\u00adtos. A light\u00adheart\u00aded and humor\u00adous car\u00adtoon helped estab\u00adlish a friend\u00adship between the two. After two for\u00admal vis\u00adits and a read\u00ading of her auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy, Rea\u00adsons for Hope,
\n.
\n\u2026 he came up with the idea for this pic\u00adture book. When he fin\u00adished the first draft and showed it to Jane, he was ner\u00advous. To his sur\u00adprise, she praised it fer\u00advent\u00adly, only not\u00ading that she wore hair\u00adpins, not head\u00adbands, as a child. Patrick explained that it was based on a pho\u00adto in her auto\u00adbi\u00adog\u00adra\u00adphy. Jane told him that the pho\u00adtog\u00adra\u00adph\u00ader had put it on her for the pho\u00adto; she nev\u00ader wore it her\u00adself. So, in the pic\u00adture book, Jane wears hair\u00adpins.<\/p>\n

   
\nShar\u00ading these details helps read\u00aders under\u00adstand the com\u00adplex cre\u00adative process behind this seem\u00ading\u00adly sim\u00adple pic\u00adture book. Patrick has select\u00aded sev\u00ader\u00adal par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly rep\u00adre\u00adsen\u00adta\u00adtive pas\u00adsages from Jane Goodal\u00adl\u2019s exten\u00adsive biog\u00adra\u00adphy, pre\u00adsent\u00ading them with refined text and metic\u00adu\u00adlous\u00adly designed illus\u00adtra\u00adtions. Read\u00ading a pic\u00adture book like this should\u00adn\u2019t be rushed.<\/p>\n

   
\nPay close atten\u00adtion to the images in the book, which are com\u00adposed of pho\u00adtographs and draw\u00adings. The draw\u00adings take two dis\u00adtinct forms: light, soft water\u00adcol\u00adors with a touch of car\u00adtoon\u00adish\u00adness, pri\u00admar\u00adi\u00adly depict\u00ading Jane\u2019s child\u00adhood; and wood\u00adcuts with strong lines and clear images, believed to be from the late 19th and ear\u00adly 20th cen\u00adtu\u00adry print\u00admak\u00ading style, pri\u00admar\u00adi\u00adly depict\u00ading ani\u00admals and plants in nature. The artist attempts to cap\u00adture Jane\u2019s two dis\u00adtinct spir\u00adi\u00adtu\u00adal worlds: a roman\u00adtic side and a rig\u00ador\u00adous sci\u00aden\u00adtif\u00adic spir\u00adit. From a sci\u00aden\u00adtif\u00adic per\u00adspec\u00adtive, Jane exhib\u00adit\u00aded the qual\u00adi\u00adties of a sci\u00aden\u00adtist even in her child\u00adhood: a pas\u00adsion for per\u00adson\u00adal expe\u00adri\u00adence, patient obser\u00adva\u00adtion, dili\u00adgent read\u00ading, and metic\u00adu\u00adlous record-keep\u00ading. The Croc\u00ado\u00addile Club mag\u00ada\u00adzine in the book is a child\u00adhood cre\u00adation of Jane\u2019s. How\u00adev\u00ader, the roman\u00adtic side expressed in water\u00adcol\u00adors was also par\u00adtic\u00adu\u00adlar\u00adly impor\u00adtant to Jane. It was this side that led the frail Jane, unable to attend col\u00adlege due to her poor fam\u00adi\u00adly back\u00adground, to ven\u00adture deep into the African jun\u00adgle, spend time with chim\u00adpanzees, and ulti\u00admate\u00adly to become a wildlife biol\u00ado\u00adgist. In the sec\u00adond half of the pic\u00adture book, Jane, sit\u00adting in the tree, unknow\u00ading\u00adly enters the world of imag\u00adi\u00adna\u00adtion, from the British coun\u00adtry\u00adside to the col\u00ador\u00adful African jun\u00adgle, where she and the chim\u00adpanzee swing on vines in the for\u00adest\u2026<\/p>\n

   
\nWhen it comes to the sim\u00adplic\u00adi\u00adty of words, Patrick, as a car\u00adtoon\u00adist, is def\u00adi\u00adnite\u00adly a mas\u00adter. His words are often most touch\u00ading when they are very sim\u00adple. For exam\u00adple, when Jane is lying on the grass sur\u00adround\u00aded by chick\u00adens, the whole page only reads \u201cIt
\nwas a mag\u00adi\u00adcal world full of joy and won\u00adder, and Jane felt very much
\na part of
\nIf you savor it care\u00adful\u00adly, you can feel how unique Jane is as a zool\u00ado\u00adgist. She loves the world deeply and sees ani\u00admals and humans as part of the earth\u00ad\u2019s big fam\u00adi\u00adly, includ\u00ading her\u00adself. When Jane and her toy chim\u00adpanzee are sit\u00adting in the tree, the text on the dou\u00adble page is sim\u00adpler: Jane
\ncould feel her own heart beat\u00ading, beat\u00ading, beat\u00ading.
\nThis is what the author wants to say to chil\u00addren. In fact, adults can also ben\u00ade\u00adfit great\u00adly from it\u2014\u2014
\n   
\nLearn to lis\u00adten to your heart.<\/p>\n

Ajia, writ\u00adten in Bei\u00adjing in Feb\u00adru\u00adary 2013<\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"437\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b4bbf4efb.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"490\"><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"437\" name=\"image_operate_45141364954839181\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b4c0b6e5c.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"490\"><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"437\" name=\"image_operate_49161364954839411\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b4c45c457.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"490\"><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" height=\"437\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b4c78371f.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\" width=\"490\"><\/a><\/p>\n

\"\u8ffd\u9010\u68a6\u60f3 <wbr\u6839\u5728\u5fc3\u5e95\uff08\u8bfb\u300a\u6211\u2026\u2026\u6709\u68a6\u300b\u6709\u611f\uff09\" name=\"image_operate_68841364954783006\" src=\"https:\/\/ajia.site\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5881300ctd96b4cb36bbe.jpg\" style=\"margin: 0pt auto;display:block\" title=\"Chasing Dreams is Rooted in the Heart (Reflections on Reading "I... Have a Dream")\"><\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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