Try as I might I am hard-pressed to picture this first quarter of 2016 as being anything but largely Spring-like. Granted, I can remember some very chilly days out walking and running the trails, but the very fact that I have done that this year as opposed to allowing the cold to hold me prisoner in my warm castle, has given rise to the belief that we are in perpetual Spring. And with nature stirring expectantly in its winter bed, something unexpected has been stirring within me: the desire to experience previously unread children’s classics.
That stirring became a call to action today when, for no apparent reason, I felt compelled to go buy copies of Bridge to Terabithia and Tuck Everlasting. I have seen and enjoyed both film adaptations, but had never read the books. In regards to Katherine Paterson’s 1977 Newbery Award novel, that is no longer the case.
I suspect that Bridge to Terabithia was buzzing around my head from reading the word “terebinth” in the Bible earlier this morning, a word that I have always loved, being so very fond of trees. I had the good fortune of having a few hours to myself this afternoon, so I sat down with an IBC root beer and one of my wife’s new IKEA glasses (both of which seemed strangely appropriate) and read three quarters of the book in one pass, finishing the remaining fourth when I got home this evening.
The first thing that struck me was how cleverly Paterson introduced the time period in which the story was set. The manner in which the book opens, and the names of the various characters, gives the book the feeling that it could have been set much farther in the past…and then she drops in a reference to the television program Wide World of Sports.
I felt an instant connection to Jesse Oliver Aarons, Jr. He is ten years old, and I would have been nine in 1977. He was obsessed with being a fast runner, something I also thought a lot about when I was that age, being a small child but one who managed to get picked early in schoolyard games because I was quick. He loved to draw, something I did often in my childhood. And he wasn’t all that thrilled about doing household chores.
Ditto.
I can certainly understand his having a crush on the “hippie” music teacher, Miss Edmunds.
“Miss Edmunds was one of his secrets. He was in love with her….Her long swishy black hair and blue, blue eyes. She could play the guitar like a regular recording star, and she had this soft floaty voice that made Jessie squish inside.”
Admittedly this “understanding” may be based entirely on the fact that Zooey Deschanel plays the role in the film adaptation.
At its heart Bridge to Terabithia is about a lonely boy, one who feels inept and misunderstood, and an equally lonely girl who just so happens to be bold and not afraid to use her imagination. Both love stories, though Jess’ poverty has deprived him of the reading experiences that his newly arrived friend, Leslie Burke, has had. In these two characters we see so many of the experiences we have all shared in those awkward elementary school years: demanding teachers, bullying by the older kids, difficult social hierarchies, the desire to be admired by one’s peers.
Katherine Paterson writes with a beautiful economy of words. At 165 pages, the story flies by, and yet so much happens in these brief pages. Paterson builds the kind of genuine, satisfying friendship that allows readers to savor their own recollections of past and present friendships. She writes about a world that I remember, one that seemed much simpler, and yet was just as filled with angst and fear as the world we live in today. I remember the rush of new friendships and the joys of exploring the woods around my neighborhood.
Without intending to spoil a nearly 40-year-old novel (though the back cover does that admirably well), I remember the first time I lost a childhood friend…a memory that was brought back to me last night while watching an old 80’s film that we had seen together at the theater on his 16th birthday. I hadn’t thought of him and his all-too-brief time here for years, but the intervention of time does not guard against tears being shed.
Bridge to Terabithia is a lovely novel, and Jess and Leslie are wonderful characters with whom to spend some time. If you haven’t taken the time to read it, it is worthy of a quiet, sunny afternoon.
Just keep a box of tissues close to hand.
And make time for a walk in the woods.
This is one I really have to get to at some point. I’ve never seen the film version either.
I think I watched the film version one other time on DVD after seeing it in the theater. It has been a long time, but my recollection of what was in it makes me feel like they did a fairly good adaptation. I will be watching it again here soon (ordered a copy on blu ray) and will probably do a little Facebook post about the film.
Having finished Tuck Everlasting today, I’m feeling very aware of just how skillful some authors are at their craft. Both women use words in a way that almost feels magical, their descriptions are so satisfying to readers who can appreciate just how much they manage with stories that are so incredibly short, especially by today’s standards.
I think that maybe Tuck Everlasting is more an American classic? I’d never heard of it until a year or so ago, but everything I’ve heard seems to suggest that it is a great story.
That may be the case. I know it didn’t win any of the big awards, which would have put it on the map elsewhere.
I adore this book! I loved it as a kid, though I didn’t remember the title into adulthood. When the movie came out, I didn’t recognize it as the book I’d read, and I didn’t realize I’d read it. I tried reading the book, and discovered it was a book I’d been looking for for years, only having remembered a single scene.
Wow, that must have been a great moment. I have a book like that from my childhood that I still haven’t tracked down. I really only remember a little bit about it, but it is one I would love to stumble across again. I look forward to watching the film adaptation again here sometime in the coming week.
I have to admit that I LOVE the movie this book is based on. And probably for ideas that I would love in the book. Only, I have never read the book. I am not even sure why. It likely will be better than the movie, but just hasn’t happened yet!
This obviously should say the movie based on this book. I only noticed as I hit enter. Really must reread comments.
I got ya! 🙂
I was in the same boat you were in until the mood struck on Friday. I thought the movie was fabulous the first time I saw it and am kind of surprised I didn’t read the book right away at that time.
The first time I read Bridge to Terabithia, I cried for hours. I haven’t read it in many years, and I suspect I’d appreciate it much more as an adult than I did as a child.
I told Mary earlier today that, as an adult reading the book, all the foreshadowing of what was to happen makes the book almost have a palpable sense of dread, despite all the very happy things in it. Even knowing what was going to happen, I was so tense as the moment approached.
I really should reread this. Much like Amanda above, I only clearly recall a scene or two, but I have always remembered that I read it. Do you recommend the film version as well? I’ve never seen it.
I have not read the book or seen the film. I recall Nicci reading it and telling me about it years ago. Have to put it on my ever-growing list.