Jack Covert Selects - The Way of Ping

The Way of Ping: Journey to the Great Ocean by Stuart Avery Gold, Newmarket Press, 96 pages, $15.00, Hardcover, January 2009, ISBN 9781557048202 Ping, the courageous frog, is back from his quest from the first book Gold wrote about him and he's ready to take his kindred creatures back to the Great Ocean with him. He is met with much opposition and doubt from the pond, especially from Toad, the Elder who doesn't want to move anywhere, because life as he knows it is good. In fact, Toad and the others can't even grasp the fact that the ocean is bigger, and has much more to offer them, than the pond they are used to. That is, everyone but two frogs: Daikon and Hodo. These unlikely companions to Ping forge their way ahead, trying to understand how their life can be altered by this ocean. Ping takes them on a journey, not just away from the pond, but in their minds as well. He helps them see that if life isn't quite what you planned for or hoped it would be, you still have the power to change it. Daikon and Hodo, two aimless, meandering and naïve frogs, find that they can actually be in control of their own lives and make decisions for themselves. This book is not just about taking risks and charting your own path in life. It's also about getting a booster shot of bravery. In these times of economic and job stress, many people are getting lost in their pursuit of the dream they had. They may think they are stuck in something they have to do now in order for things to get better. What Ping tells us is to have a clear goal in mind and to keep it in focus, no matter what the obstacles are. Maybe how you are getting there is not the right way, but only you have the power to make what's wrong right. To get there takes perseverance, drive and initiative. Sort of like the little engine that could, Ping helps his friends realize their individual hopes for the future, and along the way he teaches us all a valuable lesson or two. The Way of Ping is not just a simple story of a little frog from a small pond. It's about the everyman and the struggles we all face in life.