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A review by briandemarco_97
Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
5.0
While spending time with my girlfriend and her 2 year old son, we let him have the Netflix remote and he came across the Charlotte's Web movie from the 70s. Watching reminded me of reading the book as a child, something I had almost forgotten about. Charlotte's Web is one of the best children's books ever written, and every child with a love of reading will no doubt love it.
One thing that all great children's literature has in common is that it doesn't talk down to its audience. Too many people treat children as just dumb humans, but they are smarter than we give them credit for, with imaginations and creativity that surpasses a lot of adults. They have an astounding ability to understand more than we know. White does not ever talk down to his audiencez and nowhere is this more evident than the ending. Charlotte's Web could have taken the easy way out and had Wilbur and Charlotte live happily ever after, but E.B. White was smarter than that, and he knew that his audience was smarter than that. Death is a major theme in this book, and White knew that children can be made to understand it. The way he handles Charlotte's death at the end of the book was masterfully done.
If you do one thing for your child in their life, give them this book while they're young. Or read it yourself if you haven't. A good children's book can be enjoyed by all, and the best ones have something to say to adults as well as kids.
One thing that all great children's literature has in common is that it doesn't talk down to its audience. Too many people treat children as just dumb humans, but they are smarter than we give them credit for, with imaginations and creativity that surpasses a lot of adults. They have an astounding ability to understand more than we know. White does not ever talk down to his audiencez and nowhere is this more evident than the ending. Charlotte's Web could have taken the easy way out and had Wilbur and Charlotte live happily ever after, but E.B. White was smarter than that, and he knew that his audience was smarter than that. Death is a major theme in this book, and White knew that children can be made to understand it. The way he handles Charlotte's death at the end of the book was masterfully done.
If you do one thing for your child in their life, give them this book while they're young. Or read it yourself if you haven't. A good children's book can be enjoyed by all, and the best ones have something to say to adults as well as kids.