A Spider and a Pig: Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

charlottes-web.jpg

Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. 1952.

Similar in voice to Babbitt’s Tuck Everlasting, White’s is written in a pleasantly distant third person with an air of mystery, like the story that is unfolding is Very Important. Some things of note:

  • It opens with dialogue, which pulls the reader in immediately. Uncommon for the times, I think?
  • It confronts death quite realistically and without squeamishness. Yes, pigs become bacon and Christmas ham. Yet one pig will be spared.
  • A strong sense of sentimentality runs throughout. Sort of like Charlotte’s character herself.

Total aside: I played Fern in my fourth grade production of Charlotte's Web. I had to sing to a stuffed pig, and during dress rehearsal I went missing for a few minutes, so the Green-Room-Nazi-Mom kept a strict eye on me. She made me miss an entrance during the performance because she didn't believe me when I said I needed to be on stage. Funny what odd details make an impression.

I also had to kiss Wilbur (Jon VanDop, whom I loved desperately) on his sweet little head at the end. I'm so glad he wasn't turned into bacon!

You may also like...
Un-Horror: The Devils You Know by MC Atwood
Un-Horror: The Devils You Know by MC Atwood

I don’t know that I’ve ever read YA horror before so I wasn’t sure what to expect. What I found in The Devils You Know by MC Atwood was rather odd—Scooby-Doo meets The Breakfast Club with a little funhouse thrown in for kicks.

Another Week, Another Book: Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster
Another Week, Another Book: Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster

I go through phases where I don’t want to read fantasy, no matter how well-reviewed it is. Unfortunately I was in one of those phases when I picked up Last Star Burning by Caitlin Sangster The opening I read reluctantly, my will rebelling. But it didn’t rebel long.

Amazing, Exotic sci-fi: The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm
Amazing, Exotic sci-fi: The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm

The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm is a truly fascinating sci-fi set in Africa. Talk about fabulous worldbuilding! It’s surprisingly accessible and gives us only a little “weirdness” at a time so we have time to acclimate.

With the BFG Movie Coming and All
With the BFG Movie Coming and All

In honor of a very special day, I thought I'd revive this old post about a book I found, um, intriguing, with some interesting asides...

Something on which to FEED (by MT Anderson)
Something on which to FEED (by MT Anderson)

In this futuristic novel by acclaimed M.T. Anderson, a stream of information virtually identical to the Internet (including banner ads) is accessed through a direct implant in the brain. This feed is integrated with the limbic system; it can read an individual’s desires, tastes and pleasures so suggested products will be sure to satisfy. Of course, nothing ever fully satisfies, since...

A Compass of Gold, off to a Good Start: Pullman's Golden Compass
A Compass of Gold, off to a Good Start: Pullman's Golden Compass

The power of a great opening: Pullman’s The Golden Compass begins, “Lyra and her daemon moved through the darkening hall, taking care to keep to one side, out of sight of the kitchen.” We see a bit of each method of creating conflict. We know...

The Gift of Suffering: The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Gift of Suffering: The Giver by Lois Lowry

Lowry opens The Giver with a description of fear and immediately cements the unusualness of the world she’s created as well as giving us insight into the young protagonist, Jonas. She also is so deliciously good at creating a Utopia that seems wonderful, at the start, and only slowly...

Secrets, Platforms, Bizarre Britishisms
Secrets, Platforms, Bizarre Britishisms

Rich and fun fantasy. Ibbotson starts off with quaint Brittishisms, ghosts, and secret doors to other worlds. What’s not to love? Loads of fantastical invention and a heavy dose of political correctness. Atmospheric with a distant 3rd person narrator, similar in voice to others like...

Classics of Moles and Rats: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
Classics of Moles and Rats: The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

So Pooh-like with that quaint voice and silly words and lots of happy adverbs (see, sometimes adverbs can be good!). Mole meanders aimlessly and is bewitched, entranced, fascinated by a bubbling, gurgling, chuckling river. What wonderful words! Never mind that...

Rats of NIMH and other Rodent Themed Books
Rats of NIMH and other Rodent Themed Books

There’s a certain sameness to rodent-themed books, I’ve noticed. Velveteen Rabbit (ok, not quite, but ...), Ralph and the Motorcycle, Borrowers. Most have a lot of “critter skittering about for food” along with lots of scurrying, scraping and scampering...

Reading ListRebecca GrabillClassics, Fantasy, MFAC Booklist MG, Middle GradeComment