The Story of Charlotte's Web by Michael Sims

 

 The Story of Charlotte's Web: E.B.White's Eccentric Life in Nature and the Birth of an American Classic. Walker and Company, 2011. Adult nonfiction.

In this novel, author Michael Sims does a masterful job of telling about the life of author E.B. White and what led him to life in New York City, to his wife, and always back to his farm in Maine. Sims writes in an eloquent manner and his descriptions are apt and  lush. Readers can almost hear the traffic sounds in the city and the silence in the country. The interviews, manuscripts, newspaper accounts, magazine articles, and other resource materials are carefully documented at the end. A bibliography for further reading is provided. His work showing how White worked and lived adds much for readers to pore over and enjoy.

E.B. White grew up on a farm. He knew the animals and the daily routine. He felt more at ease with animals than with people. His glorious book, Charlotte's Web, tells of life on a farm and the animals and people who live there. Often noted as a tale for all ages, the novel is one of friendship, greed, family, and great wisdom. If you have never read it, do it now.