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Bridge to Terabithia Review


Bridge to Terabithia  Manufacturer: HarperTeen
Author(s): Katherine Paterson

ISBN: 0060734019    EAN: 9780060734015
Binding: Paperback
Pages: 208
Reading Level: Young Adult

Average Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

Retail Price: $6.99
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Jess Aarons' greatest ambition is to be the fastest runner in his grade. He's been practicing all summer and can't wait to see his classmates' faces when he beats them all. But on the first day of school, a new girl boldly crosses over to the boys' side and outruns everyone.

That's not a very promising beginning for a friendship, but Jess and Leslie Burke become inseparable. Together they create Terabithia, a magical kingdom in the woods where the two of them reign as king and queen, and their imaginations set the only limits. Then one morning a terrible tragedy occurs. Only when Jess is able to come to grips with this tragedy does he finally understand the strength and courage Leslie has given him.




User Submitted Bridge to Terabithia Reviews


September 27, 2008
The Magic of Friendship
I have read this countless times since the 4th grade, and it still continues to be one of my favorite books ever. The odd thing is that I remember being severely disappointed to learn this was not a fantasy.

But the real story is stronger, that of a deep friendship that affects a young boy for good and bad.

There are so many levels to this book, and thus it becomes clear why these two kids would create a fantasy world for escaping the challenges of the real world. Ironically, it is the time they spend here that allows them to deal with truth and tragedy.

A celebration of friendship, life, and the human spirit, this is probably one of the greatest kids' books out there.

The movie did not do it justice.

August 22, 2008
my stepson said he hated this!
My 14-year old son said it's not very goof "fantasy", and he'd give it a half a star. He thought it was just depressing about a boy with many problems.

July 18, 2008
Bridge to Terabithia
I have recently read the beautiful novel Bridge to Terabithia. What an amazing children's book. I highly recommend this book for the young adult reader. The two main characters Jess and Leslie form a close friendship with the usual ups and downs of school children. Both children come from different backgrounds but are drawn together. This friendship strenghtens into a beautiful relationship and a closeness between to children you don't often read about these days. Tragedy strikes and young Jess experiences one of the most painful aspects of life and begins his journey into growing up. The subject covered in the story may be heavy for some children so it would be a nice book to read together. Be prepared for tears and have a box of tissues handy. It's a great book for families to discuss some sensitive issues in life.

July 14, 2008
WHY WOULD YOU ALLOW YOUR CHILD TO READ THIS??
My daughter got this for her birthday. I hated this book!! The story is fine. Maybe kids might get something deep from this but I doubt it. From the first page, the characters are all dark and ugly to each other. There is no respect shown for any authority figure in the book from parents to teachers. There is no love or respect between any siblings. There are plenty of cuss words throughout the book. There are illusions to a child/teacher inappropriate relationship. There is a whole discussion about God d---- people to h---. The words in this book can't be typed in this review, so why would you allow your child to read them?? The death of the child holds no meaning, because I didn't feel anything for any of the characters and there's no great lesson in the death either. There are lots of references to killing people "by the childen"! Such things like "I'd like to kill him/her" said repeatedly, like it's ok to say that. The parents are portrayed as insignificant and stupid. There are illusions that the boy may turn out gay because he draws. There are lots of mean remarks about fat people. I have no idea how this book got an award and why it has 800 star reviews. I only know I am sick that my daughter got this book as a gift and read it before I checked it out. There is nothing edifying in this book whatsoever and I'm probably on damage control for the next 6 months with my child.

June 9, 2008
Bridge to Terabithia Recommmendation
Bridge to Teribithia is a great book! It is about friendship. Jesse, the main character lives with his four sisters, momma, and papa. When Leslie moves in next door, Jesse's life was changed. Jesse and Leslie started Teribithia, an imaginary kingdom where they rule as king and queen.At the end of the book, Leslie mysteriously dies, and Jesse feels like his life is over. May Belle, one of his sisters, becomes queen of Teribithia.

This book is truly great. Jesse stuggles with his life every day. That makes the story more exciting. Katherine Paterson wrote a great story. She wrote it with suspensing moments. This book is good for people of all ages.

June 6, 2008
What can I say?
In the Bridge to Terabithia Jess is a 5th grade boy who loves to run. Jess spent a lot of his summer running so when the day that the 5th grade boys raced at school he would win and finally stand out. The day of the race was finally there some of the 5th grade boys got the starting line. All of a sudden Leslie the new girl, joined them in the race . The race started and all of them took off jess was in the lead but Leslie passed him, and ended up beating jess and the rest of the boys. This started a great friendship between Leslie and jess, which was full of excitement, sadness, and adventure.

May 12, 2008
Bridge to Kcs
What if you could go away to a special that, a land where you had to imangine everything to see it. Well this is the land of Terabithia, Jess and Leslie. Jesses Oliver Aaron, Jr. is in the the fifth grade and want to be the fastest runner in his class. He is also a very good artist. Leslie Burke is also in the fifth grade, and she is the fastest in the class. She has a strong imagination mind. This takes place in sort of earlier times, Terabithia, Lark Creed Elemantary, and in Jesses Farm.
Jesses wasn't the person anyone wanted to hang around and wasn't very social. Until he met Leslie who completley change the way how he saw everything and slowly started changing. The theme is that when something bad happends, you can't let it affect your present life. You have to let go and move on. Brige to Terathita, what the title means is that, basically all it was, was a brige to get to Terabithia.
Leslie moves into the house next to Jesses. They don't talk to each other at first, but then when they start school they see each other again. They still don't talk, Leslie wants to have friends but Jesses doesn't. One day Leslie talks to Jesses, they don't really understand each other at first, but as they spend more time together they become better friends everyday. One day something horrible happen and to find out read the book.
This book was very easy to read. The pacing starts off really slow then speeds up alittle. This was from a third person view. I think that this was written is a Christian Perspective. I recommend this to people who want to finish a book fast for no reason.




March 25, 2008
Bridge to Magic, Tears and Laughter
I only just read (twice) Bridge to Terabithia - a book that many people read as a kid, and I'm nearly thirty. I saw the movie first and then I just had to read it, too. And I'm so glad I did! It's funny how you can relate to a ten year old kid at this age, but also wonderful to realize you can. With all the magic (that is really just a child's imagination) the story is so real it's impossible not to feel you're re-living some parts of your childhood, which I found somehow comforting. The book is beautifully written, and when it all seems so serious you're surprised by a line that will make you laugh out loud. In the middle of the night, in my case.

February 25, 2008
A place, just for us.
I almost cried, and I'm not the crying type. I'm the kind of man who breaks things with sledge hammers and swordfights in the backyard. And despite my best effort, my eyes started sweating.

Ten-year-old Jesse Oliver Aarons Jr. wants to be the fastest boy at Lark Creek Elementary. The biggest event on the school playground is the races, and Jesse only won once all last year. So all summer long, he wakes up early each morning to go running, before coming home and milking the cow. It's going to be his be secret, his glorious claim to fame. Summer's ending, school's starting back up, and Jesse's going to win.

Then Leslie Burke moves into the old Perkins place down the street (her parents are "reassessing their value structure). And even though she obliterates the boys in the races and ruins the fun for the whole year, she and Jesse find a way to become friends. The best of friends.

"Do you know what we need?" Leslie asks him. "We need a place, just for us. It would be so secret that we would never tell anyone in the whole world about it."

And Terabithia is born. A place of imagination and friendship, secrets and love. A place where an ordinary boy and girl can rule as king and queen, inventing adventures that they can enjoy together. A place to escape from family and friends who won't let you be who you want to be. A place that can only be entered by swinging across an enchanted rope.

The resulting story is a moving look into the grief one experiences after a tragic accident. With careful and elegant brushstrokes, Peterson paints a canvas rich with the vibrancy of youth, the depth of friendship, and the dark hues of religion and life that sometimes color our journey through life.

If you haven't read this one, treat yourself to a quality novel. 1978 Newbery Award Winner, BRIDGE TO TERABITHIA is worth the time.

--- Reviewed by Jonathan Stephens

January 7, 2008
An in between book
BOOK REVIEW by Trey and Cody (Mrs. D's class)



Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson is a very interesting book. The two main characters are Jess and Leslie. They lived in Millsburg. These two kids become great friends. They build a tree house and they named their kingdom Terabithia. I would recommend this book because I liked it and it was cool. I liked the part when the wardrobe came out of the woods and when Jess builds a bridge that heads to the land of Terabithia. It looked like a castle and had a lot of monsters and one wardrobe that was big. The castle had a lot of stuff and it was cool. We give this book 3 ½ stars because it is a good book but we didn't like the end.



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