“Over the Distant Mountain Ranges” by Dennis Wong takes into account the significance of familial connections toward the young ones. It registers the role that parents play not just in their general well-being but also upon the cultivation of their individual happiness. Losing them will be searing. And this loss, it will consequently ripple to that of their children and how they will see the world. All Lucinda had ever known in her entire life was the love of her parents. They were her councilors, her trusted companions, and her only friends. But luck did not favor the child’s resolve, as they took away the only family that she has come to cherish. And now she had to live with her grandparents, who may have been also recipients of the loss, but can never really be emphatic with her pain.

 She grieved and desired to bring back what was once lost to her. And so, with her desperate plea coupled with that of her grandmother, her desires came true. The souls of her parents came to live by Annalise and Phil, the horses that resided in their stables. Lucinda was nothing short of ecstatic to finally be able to connect with her deceased loved ones, and so she nurtured their needs and gave them the love that she failed to deliver before. But then, the child’s happiness was short-lived. There was a need for her to bid goodbye the second time around as it turned out that fate…is not something that she can control. This prose narrative is meant to display the all-encompassing relationship that parents have to that of their children.

The book is characterized by its brevity and how the author was able to account its message despite this constraint. Each characters’ perspective was acknowledged page by page. One limitation however, is observed by the use of dangling events that could have been taken out as they are only subordinate to the plot. But overall, the writing proved to be efficient as it draws close to humanity and its tendency to drown in despair, hope in silence, and love unconditionally. The unsung heroes as reflected upon our grandparents are also voiced out through the author’s words. The story made us realize that the affection that they have for their grandchildren is on par with the affection that they have given to their parents. They also have our backs, as always. If you are looking for emotional but effective reads, then this book is meant for you to find.