This weekly event is hosted by Lori at Escape Between the Pages. What Lori does is each week she posts a trailer for a particular movie and the description for the book that inspired it. Readers are encouraged to comment on the book, the movie, or both.This week I'm going to be talking about one of my favorite books ever - Charlotte's Web. I don't care about all the other random things I read before this book, but I DO vividly remember this being the first nice hard cover my mother ever got me - as a Christmas present no less. I believe it's one of those books that stays with you forever, because the themes and emotions it depicts are timeless in their simplicity. I tried to find a good 'book blurb' to remind people what the story is about, but everything was too ridiculous or concentrated too much on the (newer) movie version and not about the book. For me, this book is about friendship and life. Wilber is born and has to learn to navigate the world as we all do, with all the challenges, hardships, and loss inherent to that journey.
The movie takes this basic story line and jazz's it up a bit with music, lights, and sounds. The basic story is the same, but due to the audience it was targeted to and the time it was made (1973) it might not seem quite as hard hitting as the original book. Still, the end is bittersweet and you become so attached and won over by Charlotte that you're still somewhat devastated when she's gone. I haven't seen the recent redo of the film, but I know that the first release is a movie I'll never forget, mostly because the book has such a hold on my childhood and my development as a person.
