Helpful Score: 6
I read this book the first time as a grade-schooler. I loved it, I loved how it didn't lie to me and how it didn't pretty things up. I loved the purity of it. I searched for it for years and finally found it again (I was incredibly surprised that so few book-store employees had never heard of it!) in my twenties. It took me back to the first time I read it and I enjoyed it just as much as an adult as I did when I was younger. I highly recommend this book and have even gone so far as to buy and send copies of it to friends and relatives since finding it again.
Helpful Score: 5
A classic, must read. Only passing on because I have another copy.
It's a book you'll read over and over at any age.
It's a book you'll read over and over at any age.
Helpful Score: 4
One day while bored near the holidays, I, at 37 years old (adult kids with no grandkids), watched this movie. I loved it. Being a member of PBS , I decided to read this children's book. I am so glad I did. Don't ever think you are to old to read a child/young adult/pre teen book! I almost missed out on one of the best books I have ever read!
Helpful Score: 4
This is one of the best children's books I have ever read. It's a powerful, yet simple, story about friendship, life, and finding your place in the world. Despite being an award winner, this book is frequently banned - do yourself a favor and fight censorship by reading this wonderful tale!
Helpful Score: 4
An older Newberry-award winning children's novel published in 1960, I think, about a fifth-grade boy named Jesse who wants nothing more than to be the fastest runner in his class, and his new neighbor Leslie, who (even though she's a girl) beats him handily in a race. They become fast friends in spite of it, and spend hours in the fields and forests across the creek near their houses, in a make-believe world Leslie has named Terabithia. Fifth grade leaves some hard lessons to be learned for Jesse. I loved this book--very heartwarming, gut-wrenching story of growing up and learning to deal with the curve balls life throws at you.
Helpful Score: 2
This book both enchanted me and my 8 year old granddaughter. The story of a summer of youth that its both innocent and hear breaking. A wonderful read with or without a child.
Helpful Score: 1
A good story for all ages... Katherine Patterson's "Bridge to Terabithia" is a Winner of the Newbery Medal... Just recently released as a movie... This book is a little different... Still the same story... Some of the events that take place are different than the movie... also more detailed... isn't that the way it is though... the book always seems to be better... Although I did enjoy the movie too... Great read for those 8 years and up... smile, dg
Helpful Score: 1
A really wonderful book. It's better than the movie. I'd recommend this book for a 5th grader and up. A great book for a young reader or an adult.
Helpful Score: 1
Winner of the Newberry medal, this is a classic novel. I first read this as a teenager and could relate to both characters. I think I cried at the end.
Helpful Score: 1
No wonder this book was awarded a Newbery Medal it is a can't-put-it down story that will set any reader thinking.
Helpful Score: 1
I was absolutely so sad to see this movie. If you're buying this book after seeing the movie you're in for what I hope is a pleasant surprise. The book was much better than the movie. Isn't it always? It just captured everything more vividly. Seeing the Kingdom of Terabithia come to life in the movie isn't the same as feeling it live in the book.
Helpful Score: 1
This was one of my favorite books as a child and when I was home visiting my mother one weekend I decided to pick it up and read it as an adult. It still had the same strong heart as it did years ago. The characters make you want to pick them up and embrace them. This book lets your imagination run wild and your mind wanders to that special place you created as a child. It's a safe place and a great book if you need a to cry, smile, and just be a kid again.
Helpful Score: 1
Winner of the 1978 Newberry Medal and currently being made into a major motion picture, this wonderful little book is great reading for adults as well as children.
Despite a not very promising beginning for a friendship, Jess Aarons and Leslie Burke become inseperable. It doesn't matter to Jess that Leslie dresses funny, or that her family has a lot of money, but no TV. Leslie has imagination and together she and Jess create Terabithia, a magical kingdom in the woods where the two of them reign as king and queen. Then a terrible tragedy occues and only when Jess is able to come to grips with this tragedy does he finally understand the strength and courage Leslie has given him.
Despite a not very promising beginning for a friendship, Jess Aarons and Leslie Burke become inseperable. It doesn't matter to Jess that Leslie dresses funny, or that her family has a lot of money, but no TV. Leslie has imagination and together she and Jess create Terabithia, a magical kingdom in the woods where the two of them reign as king and queen. Then a terrible tragedy occues and only when Jess is able to come to grips with this tragedy does he finally understand the strength and courage Leslie has given him.
Helpful Score: 1
Great story about friendship and dealing with families, but a little sad in the end.
Helpful Score: 1
I loved this story of two best friends who just happen to be of the opposite sex. They play in their imaginary kingdom until something happens to one of the friends. I think my best part is having a place to go away from everyone else where your imagination can run free.
Helpful Score: 1
This is a very well written book, but it is highly traumatic. 16 years after being exposed to it at age 10, it still disturbs me. And not in a good 'oh I made an impression" way. I would recommend this only for older children OR children who are trying to cope with "Loss" as they say. Otherwise, expose your child at your own risk...
Helpful Score: 1
This is a fabulous book! I read it in one sitting and although I am an adult, I believe a teen would really like this. The ending is sad, so prepare yourself, but even so, it was wonderful. I would say, even catharctic. Enjoy...
Helpful Score: 1
I loved this book! It made me laugh, and it made me cry. A must read. :)
Helpful Score: 1
This is a well written book and great for students of all ages but I actually liked the movie better. I thought they did a super job with the character of Janice Avery and I love the end. I don't generally like a movie better but this time I did. Enjoy both though.
Helpful Score: 1
One of the best children's books ever:)
This a great book. A must read for someone who wants friendship, adventures, comedy, and most importantly imagination.
A touching story.
Jesse's greatest ambition is to be the greatest runner in the fifth grade...
Read this in elementary school and LOVED it! Great characters and deals with a girl who has a wonderful imagination!
Do not read this book if you don't want to cry.
A wonderful read for tweens.
This book is not just for kids! This is a great book for adults and older kids!
i had to read this book for school. i cant say i loved it but it was a great book and i recomend it to everyone
What a great book, sad though!
Is a John Newberry Medal book...
I read this book in elementary school for the first time, and many times since. It is a fantastic book, and I highly recommend you read it, or give it to your children if they experience the death of a friend. The movie was good, but it didn't quite do justice to the book itself.
I first read this book about 12 years ago and absolutely fell in love with it. It has remained etched in my memory all these years. I am so glad that they have made it into a movie. Enjoy!
Very good book, although not as good as all the hype suggests. I don't believe the ending unhappy, it is just closer to real life where not everyone lives happily ever after, but no matter what we learn from it.
It was quite what I was expecting based on the movie trailer, but it is a touching (though not original)story about friendship and tragedy.
It's a great book, but don't expect a happy ending.
Very good book. My son read it several times.
Delightful and very moving book. I believe both children and adults will love. Definitely a read-together book. Fun to read before the movie.
Jess and Leslie create Terabithia out of their imaginations. Then tragedy strikes! I couldn't put this book down when I first read it.
So glad I read this before taking the little ones to see the movie.
eek!
eek!
An awesome book! A very sad book but well written.
An excellent story - easy read. Would be enjoyable for young readers.
I love this book! It has been my favorite since I was 11!
I fell in love with this book in 6th grade. It was required reading for my English class and truly made me look forward to class. This is one of many good books that teacher had us read that year. A real coming-of-age book. Definitely a book even kids who don't like to read would enjoy.
A classic must read, what more can I say.
Two lives are bridged - and nothing will ever be the same.
A Newberry Medal winner, 1978. A friendship between a boy and a girl in fifth grade, who would not necessarily become friends gives the reader an insight into the feelings of a boy when faced with tragedy.
I cannot believe I had never read this before! Jess and Leslie get off to a rough start but quickly become best friends. Leslie is a wonderful story teller and she and Jess create their own land of Terabithia. One morning, while Jess goes off on a spur of the moment trip with his favorite teacher (forgetting to include Leslie) a tragedy occurs.
Fun, fast reading little story.
A true classic, and a quick read
Excellent book for a middle schooler to read.
My daughter really enjoyed this!
This is a wonderful but sad story! I really enjoyed reading this with my teenager - yes, we still read together!
I suppose that, as a literary work, this book is well-written, and it was interesting up to a point, but I was greatly disappointed in the ending. Probably there will be many readers who feel differently, but I happen to dislike the modern tendency to think that just because real kids have painful experiences, it is good for children's fiction to have sad or even grim endings. I would rather they have a pleasant experience. The real world is bad enough.
A real tear jerker.
I normally love anything by Paterson but didn't like this one.
This is a fantastic book telling of the adventures of two young children. This is a classic book that everyone should read!
This is a wonderful story about childhood friendship.
A really great story! Slightly sad near the end, but still worth reading. Jess and Leslie are friends who create the magical world of Terabithia.
Great book. See the movie aswell.
I first read this book over 20 years ago when I was around 11 years old. I've never forgotten this book and I purchased it not too long after the birth of my first child in hopes of someday sharing it with him. Yes, it has a very sad ending, but the focus should not be on the tragedy, but rather on the Jess's transformation and growth. It is a beautiful story that will remain ageless.
Wow! Wow! Oh Wow! What else can i say?
Lovely story of an unlikely friendship.
This book is great! It tells of the lonesomeness of a person looking for his specialness and finding it in Terabithia and his best friend.Beautifully written and heart warming.The ending is sad but hopeful in the lessons learned.We should all have a "bridge".
Great read, fun, imaginative. Fun for children as well as adults!
I read this book back in middle school and the story has stuck with me ever since. It tells a story of a beautifully developed friendship and the magical world they have created across the bridge. Anybody who had a big imagination as a kid will be able to appraciate this story.
I had to read this book for a college children's lit class. Even as an adult, I loved this book.
I read for pleasure and hate a book with a sad ending. Boo for this one.
must read
great classic story
If you like a story about about imagination...this is the book for you.
It's worth its designation as a classic. It's about 2 10 year olds in West Virginia told from the boy's perspective, definitely for the thinking youth.
An excellent young adult book with insights into: being an outsider, boys *can* play with girls (and vice versa!), and death.
I remember reading this back in elementary school (or middle school, I'm not sure which), and it is a book that sticks with me to this day. If you are looking for book that will help a young person cope with death and loss in a sincere and non-placating way, than this is the book for you. Plus, this book continues to show up on lists of books people try to get banned from school and public libraries, so you know it has to be worth reading. A must for any child's growth reading.
Not what I expected but an interesting book for teens
A truly extraordinary book! A little sad as well but still truly inspiring!
well written. I would definitely recommend this book to any lover of imagination. I SO cried at the end though :(
This is a good book. Jess and Leslie create the magical land Terabithia with their imagination-- then tragedy strikes. I could not put this book down.
This book is not one that ordinarily I would choose for my own reading. I had to read this book for a Children's Literature class, and it turned out to be a very easy read.
It's interesting how many children there are that actually could be the protagonist for this story. As an educator, I see children that could potentially fit this profile everyday.
Noteworthy excerpts:
"It made Jess ache inside to watch his dad grab the little ones to his shoulder, or lean down and hug them". (page 23)
"For the first time in his life he got up every morning with something to look forward to."
Both painful one-liners, but they are the realities that some of us as adults and especially children, must deal with every day.
It's interesting how many children there are that actually could be the protagonist for this story. As an educator, I see children that could potentially fit this profile everyday.
Noteworthy excerpts:
"It made Jess ache inside to watch his dad grab the little ones to his shoulder, or lean down and hug them". (page 23)
"For the first time in his life he got up every morning with something to look forward to."
Both painful one-liners, but they are the realities that some of us as adults and especially children, must deal with every day.
It's a really good and well-written story up to a point, but the tragedy towards the end spoiled it for me. I guess I grew up in a time when realistic books presumably written for children's entertainment didn't go head-on with the awfulness of life in this way. I found the sudden tragic twist in the plot upsetting in a way that tragedy in a book for adults is not. This is an award-winning book. It is adults that give awards to books, and I am very curious as to how many CHILDREN are crazy about this one.
Very well written story about a fifth grade boy and girl who become best friends and create an imaginary world as their sacred place. The story does take a sad turn, but it also depicts a real picture of what it is like to experience friendship love and loss. The loss is expressed very well, particularly the symbolism at the end as the main character discovers his way of integrating his two worlds and coming to peace with his grief.
Great children's book. My daughter had to read for her class. She really enjoyed it.
I read this book as an adult, and I thought it was well written. I even convinced one of my sons to read it for school...more than 1 years later..he still remembers it! You wont forget this one!
This is a great read!!! No matter who you are!!
Bridge To Terabithia is a good book for children and young adults. While being based around a child's experiences and troubles, it still maintains a good plot and semi-sophisticated dialogue that makes it good for everyone. It was more sad than I had originally expected, but it makes for an excellent story. This book also includes the original sketches for some characters and places.
A great classic novel for Young Adults (or Adults!).
This was such a good book. I could not put it down.
Very entertaining and interesting reading for youngsters.
This book fascinated me as a kid. I hadn't read many books where the characters' lives were so different from my own, but had the same fantasies (of a faraway land abiding by their rules) and activities (poking around in creeks, as opposed to being sucked through time for a magical adventure) as I did. And in the end, it still makes me cry.
This book is about two children who visit an imaginary land
"We need a place," she said, "just for us. It would be so secret that we would never tell anyone in the whole world about it." She lowered her voice to almost a whisper. "It might be a whole secret country, and you and I would be the rulers of it."
It was Leslie's idea to create Terabithia, their secret kingdom in the woods where they reigned as king and queen. There no enemy--not their teacher, "Monster Mouth" Myers, their bullying schoolmates, Jess's four sisters, or even Jess's own fears and Leslie's imaginary foes--could defeat them. Jess's friendship with Leslie and the worlds of imagination and learning that she opens up to him, change him forever and enable him to cope with the unexpected tragedy that touches them all.
It was Leslie's idea to create Terabithia, their secret kingdom in the woods where they reigned as king and queen. There no enemy--not their teacher, "Monster Mouth" Myers, their bullying schoolmates, Jess's four sisters, or even Jess's own fears and Leslie's imaginary foes--could defeat them. Jess's friendship with Leslie and the worlds of imagination and learning that she opens up to him, change him forever and enable him to cope with the unexpected tragedy that touches them all.
This is the amazing story of a young boy who realizes who he is through the sudden loss of a dear friend. The author creates some very genuine and endearing characters. She stitches them to your heart and then gently rips out the patch leaving a burning tear that reminds you of the bittersweet nature of life lived honestly.
A GREAT BOOK!!! its a newberry honor! so the cover is different then shown.... hope u enjoy!
My 12 year old son had to read it in school and said he really liked it up until a character died and he hated it after that.
classic kids book, one you will want to read again and again. My adult son told me recently it was his favorite as a child.
Best friends create Terabithia, a magical kingdom. in the woods.One morning a tragedy happens.
I think that this book wasn't as good as the movie. It still brought tears to my eyes... moving and touching.
Thought I would enjoy it more.
Do not read this book or allow an emotionally unstable child/person to read this book until/unless you need a good cry. I read it in preparation for seeing the movie. I wound up in tears even before finishing it. The movie is sad but the book is way worse.
I read this book in 5th or 6th grade, and I remember loving the story. I just couldn't put the book down. Probably because the name almost reminds me of my own. But the adventure is definitely worth a read, and I'm looking forward to the movie.
Good story. Sad at the end.
"A remarkable book. Its theme is expanded in a masterful way, its characters are real and many-faceted--but perhaps best of all, this book is a crackling good story."
--Association for Library Service to Children(ALA)
"The author...has written a percetive, touching book set in contemporary America...one of remarkable richness and depth beautifully written."
--The Horn Book Magazine
--Association for Library Service to Children(ALA)
"The author...has written a percetive, touching book set in contemporary America...one of remarkable richness and depth beautifully written."
--The Horn Book Magazine
Remember when we were little kids, and we always played games with our friends that most of the time involved our imagination? How we created worlds that only our most trusted best friends could see? How in our world, we had everything we imagined? How in our world, everything was innocent and pure? How in our world, we never thought that one day, life would take over and destroy our it?
Bridge to Terabithia, is that world. The world we dream of when we sleep. Don't you ever miss that world?
Bridge to Terabithia starts off with a boy named Jess, who's a middle grader that acts like most teenagers today. In his eyes, his life sucks. That is, unless it's the annual school race where he decides that he will win in first place. And win he almost does. That is, until someone beats him. A girl by the name of Leslie Burke. This girl beat all the boys in the race and back then and even today, when you're a little kid, being beaten by girls is not okay. After all, they do have cootiesâ¦
The story goes on and Jess and Leslie become the best of friends, and eventually, as all kids, create their perfect world. Terabithia. To get into Terabithia, you have to cross this creek by swinging on a rope. But in their minds, it's a magnificent bridge. They have battles and wars, party's and everything else there is to do. Outside of Terabithia, no one else knows about it.
Jess starts to think that his life is getting better and Leslie is living life as free-spirited as she can with her family. Something Jess wish he had. In his eyes, she has everything he doesn't. So when his teacher invites him on a trip, he doesn't invite Leslie along, as he was told to. Instead, he makes an excuse that she can't go. That night, everything changed. Fatally.
In Jess' mind, Terabithia still lives, as he shares the secret along with his younger sister. In his mind, Terabithia still includes Leslie.
Bridge to Terabithia, is that world. The world we dream of when we sleep. Don't you ever miss that world?
Bridge to Terabithia starts off with a boy named Jess, who's a middle grader that acts like most teenagers today. In his eyes, his life sucks. That is, unless it's the annual school race where he decides that he will win in first place. And win he almost does. That is, until someone beats him. A girl by the name of Leslie Burke. This girl beat all the boys in the race and back then and even today, when you're a little kid, being beaten by girls is not okay. After all, they do have cootiesâ¦
The story goes on and Jess and Leslie become the best of friends, and eventually, as all kids, create their perfect world. Terabithia. To get into Terabithia, you have to cross this creek by swinging on a rope. But in their minds, it's a magnificent bridge. They have battles and wars, party's and everything else there is to do. Outside of Terabithia, no one else knows about it.
Jess starts to think that his life is getting better and Leslie is living life as free-spirited as she can with her family. Something Jess wish he had. In his eyes, she has everything he doesn't. So when his teacher invites him on a trip, he doesn't invite Leslie along, as he was told to. Instead, he makes an excuse that she can't go. That night, everything changed. Fatally.
In Jess' mind, Terabithia still lives, as he shares the secret along with his younger sister. In his mind, Terabithia still includes Leslie.
A wonderful read for tweens.
I enjoyed the movie much more than the book. I watched to movie before I read the book thinking that it would be a great read. But there again the movie didn't follow the book entirely. It is a wonderful piece of writing, but the story shocked me. As a Christian I didn't like the fact that Lesie was worshiping the trees/forests. While at the same time they were going to church and talking about how God would send people to to H*** if they did believe in the Bible. Over all a nice book, but from another point of view, ( Say a Mother's, or Christian's) it falls short of brilliant. I'm not a mother, but I am a Christian and I don't really think this book is The Best I've ever read.
I ordered this book after seeing the move trailers and this book looked nothing like the movie...it was a nice story but not what I was expecting.
This story really should come with a warning label. It's horribly sad, without warning. A cute story gone wrong, absolutely heartbreaking. It totally ruined the whole thing for me.
My copy has a different picture on the cover, but it's the same ISBN.
little bit of wear of back cover, but no creases. great book
