From Goodreads,"Jess Aarons has been practicing all summer so he can be the fastest runner in the fifth grade. And he almost is, until the new girl in school, Leslie Burke, outpaces him. The two become fast friends and spend most days in the woods behind Leslie's house, where they invent an enchanted land called Terabithia. One morning, Leslie goes to Terabithia without Jess and a tragedy occurs. It will take the love of his family and the strength that Leslie has given him for Jess to be able to deal with his grief.
Bridge to Terabithia was also named an ALA Notable Children’s Book and has become a touchstone of children’s literature, as have many of Katherine Paterson’s other novels, including The Great Gilly Hopkins and Jacob Have I Loved."
Goodreads - Bridge to Terabithia
Awards and Nominations:
- Newbery Medal (1978)
- Lewis Carroll Shelf Award (1978)
- Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award Nominee (1979)
- California Young Readers Medal Nominee for Middle School/Junior High (1980)
- Zilveren Griffel (1983)
A while back I created a sheet for a lesson where my students had to mark the titles of work with either quotation marks or underline. For one of the sentences, I used the title Bridge to Terabithia as well as the first chapter title, "Jesse Oliver Aarons, Jr." One of my students asked if I had the book in my library. After a quick check through my online database, I found that I didn't have a copy, but I told her I had a copy at home. She asked if I would have it in my library anytime soon. This led me to quickly power through this book to get it in my library for her to read.
Bridge to Terabithia is the story of a friendship that blossoms between Jess and Leslie. Jesse doesn't know what to think when the new girl named Leslie beats him racing at school. Soon they become close friends and create a magical land called Terabithia. But after a tragic accident happens Jesse must learn how to rely on his family to help grieve.
I have typed and erased this paragraph so many times. I can't seem to put my thoughts into words for this book. Please bear with me as I try to sort my thoughts out and put them into words. The book takes place in the 70s with clear references to the Vietnam war, hippies, and peace. That being said, the book is clearly dated. The characters are growing up in an entirely different time than what kids today are. Jesse and Leslie both actively use their imagination and play pretend, even in the fifth-grade. I think this is such a unique aspect that many kids reading this book wouldn't understand. I remember playing pretend and entertaining myself with almost nothing. Kids today don't play pretend. They are so glued to their phones and tablets that they do not know how to make-believe anymore. Times have changed so much and I think kids need to act like kids instead of trying to be years older than they are. I think kids need to read books like Bridge to Terabithia because it shows healthy examples of having an imagination and just being a kid.
As I said before this book was written in the 70s, but it has some colorful language in it. As a teacher, I don't know if I would purposefully teach this book. I will have it in my library, but I also teach my students if they don't like the language in a book to not read it. I can't possibly censor every book, nor will I. I pay attention to topics and content, but the language that may upset one student could be perfectly normal to another. I was also extremely uncomfortable with Jesse's teacher Miss Edmunds picking him up to go to the Smithsonian. There would never be a time that I would do that or would be okay with a teacher picking up my child. That moment really dated the book because a teacher would never get away with that today.
I luckily own the movie and was able to watch it shortly after finishing the book. The movie fell more into a fantasy genre with all the magical creatures that were brought to life. The book just talked about them playing pretend in Terabithia, but never going on about the creatures they saw and fought. The movie felt a little "extra" in the Terabithia department. The movie also takes place in the present-day than in the 70s. I think that was a good choice in making the movie, but it didn't stay true to the book. The main points of the book were in the movie and I really liked that.
Overall the book was good, but I have to say the movie was better. I rarely say the movie is better, but it was not dated like the movie. I still give the book 3 stars because it was a good heart-felt story. This would be a perfect book for a fourth or fifth grader looking for a good tearjerker of a story.
Bridge to Terabithia is the story of a friendship that blossoms between Jess and Leslie. Jesse doesn't know what to think when the new girl named Leslie beats him racing at school. Soon they become close friends and create a magical land called Terabithia. But after a tragic accident happens Jesse must learn how to rely on his family to help grieve.
I have typed and erased this paragraph so many times. I can't seem to put my thoughts into words for this book. Please bear with me as I try to sort my thoughts out and put them into words. The book takes place in the 70s with clear references to the Vietnam war, hippies, and peace. That being said, the book is clearly dated. The characters are growing up in an entirely different time than what kids today are. Jesse and Leslie both actively use their imagination and play pretend, even in the fifth-grade. I think this is such a unique aspect that many kids reading this book wouldn't understand. I remember playing pretend and entertaining myself with almost nothing. Kids today don't play pretend. They are so glued to their phones and tablets that they do not know how to make-believe anymore. Times have changed so much and I think kids need to act like kids instead of trying to be years older than they are. I think kids need to read books like Bridge to Terabithia because it shows healthy examples of having an imagination and just being a kid.
As I said before this book was written in the 70s, but it has some colorful language in it. As a teacher, I don't know if I would purposefully teach this book. I will have it in my library, but I also teach my students if they don't like the language in a book to not read it. I can't possibly censor every book, nor will I. I pay attention to topics and content, but the language that may upset one student could be perfectly normal to another. I was also extremely uncomfortable with Jesse's teacher Miss Edmunds picking him up to go to the Smithsonian. There would never be a time that I would do that or would be okay with a teacher picking up my child. That moment really dated the book because a teacher would never get away with that today.
I luckily own the movie and was able to watch it shortly after finishing the book. The movie fell more into a fantasy genre with all the magical creatures that were brought to life. The book just talked about them playing pretend in Terabithia, but never going on about the creatures they saw and fought. The movie felt a little "extra" in the Terabithia department. The movie also takes place in the present-day than in the 70s. I think that was a good choice in making the movie, but it didn't stay true to the book. The main points of the book were in the movie and I really liked that.
Overall the book was good, but I have to say the movie was better. I rarely say the movie is better, but it was not dated like the movie. I still give the book 3 stars because it was a good heart-felt story. This would be a perfect book for a fourth or fifth grader looking for a good tearjerker of a story.
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