Charlotte's Web

by E. B. White
Publisher: HarperCollins
Hardcover, 184 pages
Not in stock

What does a talking spider have to say about life, love, and friendship? Plenty, it turns out—Charlotte affirms to the world that Wilbur is Some Pig, and in the process proves that she's some arachnid.

The story of Fern, a young girl who rescues a runt pig from execution, and her barnyard friends is one of the loveliest stories of our own or any other time.

Wilbur isn't always some pig. He starts out childish, selfish, and afraid, but due to Charlotte's wisdom and friendship, as well as Fern's love and tenderness, he grows into a creature full of graciousness and good sense. He also seems to have a knack for escaping destruction.

Whether it's Fern's father about to kill the baby Wilbur with an axe, or Homer Zuckerman going to turn him into bacon, the pig always gets out of deadly scrapes through the diplomacy and hard work of his best friends. In the end, he demonstrates that the kindness isn't lost on him, and in turn cares for those who ask.

Charlotte's Web ends with one of the sweetest and best lines in all of literature, and only the hardest-hearted reader won't shed a tear, a little sad and a little happy, and a lot grateful for the near-perfect story they've just been told.

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