Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White is a children’s modern fantasy book. I believe this book met the criteria for the genre very well. First, the magical world is consistent throughout the book. Animals can talk to each other and understand each other, but people do not understand them. Fern is the exception, she can hear and understand when the animals talk.

Second, it suspends disbelief. The story begins in the real world where the father is sharing the exciting news of the birth of the piglets. When he tells Fern, the youngest piglet will probably die, Fern decides to rescue him and nurse him herself. When the piglet, Wilbur, is too big for the house, she takes him to the barn of Farmer Zuckerman. This is when she hears the animals talk. Nobody believes Fern, but we do because we were in the barn with Fern and heard the animals for ourselves.

Third, the detail in the story paints a picture of the farm, the people, and the animals. The author develops the character of each animal in a way we feel like we understand the animal’s thoughts and feelings. We see the detail in how the animals interact with each other. We see the sarcastic statements of Templeton, the rat, the silly wisdom of the Goose, and the unexpected kindness of Charlotte, the spider.

Fourth, the themes of the book are character building. Charlotte set an example for how to be a true friend. She was kind to Wilbur and listened to his concerns. She thought of clever ideas to save his life. Charlotte changed how others valued Wilbur’s life. She showed that Wilbur had more value than just meat, he was an awesome pig and people came to see him from miles around. This assured him he would live a long and happy life and see snow in winter. Wilbur returned the favor when he saved her children and cared for the egg sacks until they hatched. Most of them left, but three chose to stay on the farm. Wilbur named them Joy, Nellie, and Aranea. Wilbur delights in telling them the story of their awesome mother, and how she was his best friend. Fern learned the value of hard work when she accepted the responsibility of taking care of Wilbur. Templeton learned to think of others instead of only thinking about himself.

The story is aimed at children ages 8 to 12. This is a great book for young readers because it is easy to read and very entertaining. Children love to read stories about animals, especially talking animals.

I can think of several classroom activities for exploring this book. The students could draw pictures of the animals in the book. The students could be encouraged to participate in a local county fair. They could bring to school photographs of their exhibits, and any ribbons they earned. Someone could bring a pet pig to school for the kids to pet, feed, take for a walk (on a leash), bathe with buttermilk, dry him off, and brush him. The teacher could show the movie Charlotte’s Web to the class. It is a wonderful movie and the music is excellent. The parents could bring treats for after the movie, like corn dogs, popcorn, cotton candy, ice cream cones, lemonade, soda pop, and candy apples.

This book is very fun for kids and adults to read. It is considered a classic because it is worth reading over and over. This book is special to me because my grandpa, who taught fifth grade, was working with my mom on ideas for educational software years before I was born. He wanted to call it Comprehension Capers, and the first book he wanted to include was Charlotte’s Web.