Reviews

The Essays of E.B. White by E.B. White

eliz_reads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

5.0

amandadelbrocco's review against another edition

funny hopeful informative slow-paced

4.0

This was a mixed bag. I liked learning about EB White and how he incorporated his life experience in his books for children. About half the stories in this were based on his time living rurally and the other half was his time living in the city, and I think I liked the rural stories better since I could see what influenced him to write books like Charlotte's Web and The Trumpet of the Swan. He seemed to be relatively progressive for his time too.

chowmeyow's review against another edition

funny informative inspiring reflective relaxing medium-paced

5.0

mschrock8's review against another edition

4.0

I read these essays one a day and was reminded of how much I enjoy this author, even with all the essays about animals.

eliame_03's review against another edition

funny informative inspiring reflective relaxing medium-paced

4.5

An incredible read, White was a master storyteller. Each essay points a vivid picture of different points throughout his life. A lovely collection of thoughts. 

meghan111's review against another edition

4.0

Death of a Pig, January 1948

knitter22's review against another edition

5.0

I am continually amazed by and incredibly appreciative of E.B. White's writing, no matter whether his subject is spiders, pigs, roofing the barn, hurricanes, or war. He started writing essays around 1930 and continued for decades; his children's fiction was published about 70 years ago, and his writing is still relevant today and has so much to offer current readers.

Anyone who writes down to children is simply wasting his time. You have to write up, not down. Children are demanding. They are the most attentive, curious, eager, observant, sensitive, quick, and generally congenial readers on earth. They accept, almost without question, anything you present them with, as long as it is presented honestly, fearlessly, and clearly.

White expressed himself that way, honestly, fearlessly, and clearly, in all of his writing, and I always find something new in his honest clarity.

We should all do what, in the long run, gives us joy, even if it is only picking grapes or doing laundry.

Reading E.B. White's writing, whether it is essays, letters, or fiction, gives me joy and hope.

lizwisniewski's review against another edition

4.0

I suggested we read this for ladies book club and they loved it - it was so nice to introduce them to something new and have them enjoy it. Of course the writing is beautiful, but so is his way of looking at the world.

bookgirl4ever's review against another edition

4.0

I'm classifying this anthology of essays by E. B. White as biography because the essays offer just that-insight into the beloved author's mostly adult life, although he does include some essays about experiences as a teenager and a young adult. While some of the essays seem to ramble, there are some that really stand out in my mind: "Good-bye to Forty-Eighth Street," "Homecoming," "Death of a Pig," "The Geese," "What Do Our Hearts Treasure?", and the "The Years of Wonder." As a shy youth, White experienced the world. As a wise man, he lived one foot in rustic Maine, the other in New York City living an extraordinary life doing ordinary things.

Adult.

achaines's review against another edition

5.0

E.B. White is perfection. I will never write anything as clean and rich as these essays, but I can enjoy them.