BOOK REVIEW:
It
is obvious that this book by Katherine Paterson was written
with kids aged below 15 in mind. But that has not stopped
us from reviewing it – after all, it did win a John
Newbery Medal for the most distinguished contribution to American
Literature for children in 1978.
And this
ageless story captured our hearts so affectingly; we feel
that anyone who had a childhood will love the novel.
Paterson
crafts a simple tale of friendship and imagination where two
very different kids get together to create an imaginary land
of Terabithia. There, the two buddies rule as king and queen,
and an imminent tragedy eventually brings about a life lesson
one will never forget. It has already been adapted into a
Gabor Csupo-directed movie featuring kid stars Josh Hutcherson
and AnnaSophia Robb as the two leads.
The easy-to-browse
book sails through its plot with child-like innocence, and
that will make you reminisce about the simplicity that is
sorely missing in your life now. Also, the characters are
loveable and identifiable, thanks to the story’s vivid
descriptions of the main protagonists.
But
what will touch you as an adult is the twist of events at
the end of the novel. We are not giving anything away here.
What we will say is: your emotions will be confronted. And
that’s where you realize how much you have grown up
over the years.
CHOICE XCERPT:
They took turns swinging across the gully on the rope. It
was a glorious autumn day, and if you looked up as you swung,
it gave you the feeling of floating. Jess leaned back and
drank the rich, clear color of sky. He was drifting, drifting
like a fat white lazy cloud across the blue.
“Do you know what we need?” Leslie called to him.
Intoxicated as he was with the heavens, he couldn’t
imagine needing anything on earth.
“We need a place,” she said, “just for us.
It would be so secret that we would never tell anyone in the
whole world about it.”
VERDICT:
A
meaningful tale that can be used to educate the young, as
well as awaken some of the dormant emotions you have inside
you.
 
Review
by John Li
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