Tuck Everlasting
by Natalie Babbitt
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Read in March, 2008
I've seen the movie and saw this at the library. I'm in a young adult kick that's two books long. I liked the movie well enough for watching it on cable with commercials and probably edited. I have high hopes for the book. I'm only on chapter four and there have been some charming turns of phrase.
Unlike [i]Midwife's Apprentice[/i], this one is being established from the very beginning like a fable and it feels magical. I expect I shall find fable all the the way through.
UPDATED March 30 ...more
Unlike [i]Midwife's Apprentice[/i], this one is being established from the very beginning like a fable and it feels magical. I expect I shall find fable all the the way through.
UPDATED March 30 ...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
everyone
This story is a fable which was later made into a movie by Disney. The moral of the story is to live life to its fullest because the wheel of life only goes around once. As Mae Tuck says:
"Life's got to be lived no matter how long or short, you got to take what comes."
This is the premis of the conflict of the story. The Tucks are stuck in time never growing older, never dying as the result of drinking from a mysterious spring in the forest. Their secret is revealed when a young girl...more
"Life's got to be lived no matter how long or short, you got to take what comes."
This is the premis of the conflict of the story. The Tucks are stuck in time never growing older, never dying as the result of drinking from a mysterious spring in the forest. Their secret is revealed when a young girl...more
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Read in March, 2008
I've been meaning to read this book for years since it's a children's/young adult classic. I only had to pick it up about four times in order to complete it, something that I enjoy after reading dense fiction.
The plot of the novel is simple and straightforward, but the thematic elements are profound. The primary theme deals with the nature of death and its vital role on the wheel of life (the first image one encounters at the beginning of the book is a ferris wheel). Furthermore, this is ...more
The plot of the novel is simple and straightforward, but the thematic elements are profound. The primary theme deals with the nature of death and its vital role on the wheel of life (the first image one encounters at the beginning of the book is a ferris wheel). Furthermore, this is ...more
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Like so many children's classics, I read this in school as a child, and unfortunately I found it as boring then as I do now.
I reread this book and wow, what drivel.
Babbit is a gifted writer, no doubt, but I cannot stand the moralizing tone of the book.
The concept of immortality and that natural cycle of life and death are important issues to bring to the table with kids. Too bad Babbit doesn't let her readers make the choice that Winnie does. Babbit stresses the view that immortal...more
I reread this book and wow, what drivel.
Babbit is a gifted writer, no doubt, but I cannot stand the moralizing tone of the book.
The concept of immortality and that natural cycle of life and death are important issues to bring to the table with kids. Too bad Babbit doesn't let her readers make the choice that Winnie does. Babbit stresses the view that immortal...more
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Read in January, 2005
recommends it for:
anyone who enjoys a quiet read, ELA teachers 5th - 12th
This book is a quiet read. Even the drama has a hot, sleepy, summer feel to it. Have a lazy long weekend to just curl up, this is a small and in someways sad, read.
I teach this book to my students for lots of reasons. It lets us talk about metaphors and similes. The language is not complicated but it is artistic. I use it when working with predicting texts. Also, and maybe mostly, it's great for some of those big questions if you're having your students reflect upon life and family. ...more
I teach this book to my students for lots of reasons. It lets us talk about metaphors and similes. The language is not complicated but it is artistic. I use it when working with predicting texts. Also, and maybe mostly, it's great for some of those big questions if you're having your students reflect upon life and family. ...more
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Read in July, 2007
Something in this book captures a very ordinary, real-life feel. Nothing is over dramatic, the story runs in an even flow. The story itself on a bigger picture is a contrast between living life with all the events that have to accompany it--including death--and running from those necessary events but not being able to live life. 10 year old Winnie meets a family who are going to live forever. When Winnie has the option to do so as well she has to decide what she really wants.
I love children's ...more
I love children's ...more
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I loved this book and read it many times as a child. I think the mature questions it asks of children like "would you want to live forever? Would you want to live forever if you could only stay the age you are now? Are you really experiencing life if you cannot connect with anyone but a tiny group of people? Are you really living if you cannot die? In fact, it seems like these are interesting questions for adults as well.
Beautiful love story, albiet teen love, but it's a touching releva...more
Beautiful love story, albiet teen love, but it's a touching releva...more
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There is a certain variety of people that imagine immortality to be a horrible burden; this author is one of those. In this version of eternal life, the fountain of youth utterly freezes you where you are. If you have only a rudimentary skill in playing the guitar, for instance, drinking from the fountain will ensure that you will never get better, regardless of the centuries you will have to practice. Your favourite things will remain your favourites, never mind the millennia of familiarity. Es...more
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I loved the story but I hated the ending. This was the first book I was ever mad at. To this day, I still scowl at people that say that immortality is a curse. Perhaps it is, if you're stupid and lacking in any aspirations. If I were the family in this book, I could agree. But no, I'm not... I wish they would just go to college and get some dreams and stop feeling sorry for themselves. If you have the rest of eternity to kick around, do something useful like trying to save the world. If you're g...more
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recommended to Clare by:
my teacher
recommends it for: 8-14
recommends it for: 8-14
Finding a spring in a dilapidated wood that gives you everlasting life is alot of things. To the Man In THe Yellow Suit, its the way to fame and fortune. To the Tucks, its a problem that keeps them alive, not able to die. To Winnie, it could be alot of things too. She only has to ask herself: Is living forever worth it?
Living forever means she could eventually live with her sweetheart, a Tuck that cant die, but it would mean staying away from God. Winnie learns from Angus Tuck to not be afraid...more
Living forever means she could eventually live with her sweetheart, a Tuck that cant die, but it would mean staying away from God. Winnie learns from Angus Tuck to not be afraid...more
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Read in July, 2007
This book should have been nominated for a literature award in 1975. I was surprised to have missed this powerful classic in my younger days. Part fairy tale, part ethical conundrum, this book is loaded with rich symbolism, metaphors and personifications. The story follows a sheltered, young girl (Winnie), who steps out on her own for the first time and becomes entwined with an endearing and magical family (the Tucks) who have unwittingly discovered the key to everlasting life. Did you know that...more
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This book is amazing. When I read it, I felt stunned at the end. The movie is good, but it can't compare with the book. It is about a family who drank from a perfectly ordinary-looking stream and suspected nothing. But when they do not get any older years and years later, they figure out that the stream they all had drank from was an everlasting stream, and that they would live forever. Winnie is thrust upon them and the stream. She must decide to drink from the stream or not... as Angus Tuck to...more
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Read in January, 1991
Even before the introduction of any supernatural elements, Natalie Babbit weaves a setting of heavy summer afternoons and long-vanished old-growth forests redolent of magic. Winnie longs to escape from her strict, joyless Victorian family, and when she meets the Tucks, a wandering family with a heavy secret, she falls in love with their warmth, humor and compassion. The narrative is at once thoughtful and adventurous, with a great deal of reflection on the nature of life and mortality. That m...more
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Read in January, 2007
My sister remembers this being one of her favorite books growing up. I remember the title but didn't remember much about the book. After re-reading it, it just made me mad. I think I probably got mad when I was younger too. Winnie's defiance and irresponsibility drives me nuts. I'm always one to follow the rules and do what's expected of me, and she did the complete opposite. I'm sure it's a beautiful story about deciding to live forever but I guess I just don't appreciate it. I re-read this boo...more
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Read in November, 2007
recommends it for:
Grades 4-6
I thought this was a great book. It is such a creative, fantastical, idea but it has a great message and I instantly fell in love with the characters. It is about a little girl who meets a family that has found a spring with water that, if drank, will give you everlasting life. It is a beautiful story and I think kids would really enjoy its imporant message about valuing our own immortality. It will definitely make them think. Because it is such a heavy concept it is definitely for the older kid...more
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Read in November, 1992
One could say that almost every book I read in my 5th grade class made some kind of an impression on me. Perhaps because these books were beyond the trite, fluff books I had been reading once I'd gotten over my reading difficulties. Such books like Sleepover Friends and Baby-Sitters Club passed the time. But my reading teacher (Mrs. Llewellyn) picked winners for every book. This one was a most definite favorite. Not only an interesting story, but one that made you think and truly ask yourself qu...more
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This is my favorite book hands down. What really struck my attention was the unconditional love between the two main characters. This book was basically about two lovers that never wanted to be apart. When one of them found a fountain that will make you stay young forever it would be their perfect opportunity to take in order for them to never be apart. In the end I wish i could tell you what happeneds but I can't trust me this book will leave you speechless and a little teary eyed I'm not goi...more
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This is a simple but peculiar book that seems loaded with meaning, and asks a classic question: would you live forever if you could? Winnie is given that option by a back-woodsy family who have discovered (by accident) a pool of water that makes people immortal. Complicating her decision is an incipient romantic connection to the youngest boy in the family. Perhaps it really is about big, complicated questions... or perhaps the story is just a poignant metaphor for how we think of our first love...more
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Read in October, 2007
recommends it for:
young adults,,,,
i dont read young adult/youth fiction..........
not that i have an aversion 2 it.......but my readings tend 2 b darker.......
a fellow teacher recommended i give it a shot...........
the themes r real.....i am using it with my jr high book club.........the kids really like it..........
i might even show them the film adaptation.......
anyway.........i can recommend this book...........u will prob read it in less tha 2 hrs..........and i think u will really like it....
peace
...more
not that i have an aversion 2 it.......but my readings tend 2 b darker.......
a fellow teacher recommended i give it a shot...........
the themes r real.....i am using it with my jr high book club.........the kids really like it..........
i might even show them the film adaptation.......
anyway.........i can recommend this book...........u will prob read it in less tha 2 hrs..........and i think u will really like it....
peace
...more
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let's talk about amazing chapter openings, 'Skeffington was ill, seriously so.' or let's talk about amazing book openings, whole metaphors, 'The first week of August hangs at the very top of summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning...'
good literature and i use that word neither frequently nor often. she never talks down to her audience, which is among the most crucial feats of young adult fiction. wowowowow.
good literature and i use that word neither frequently nor often. she never talks down to her audience, which is among the most crucial feats of young adult fiction. wowowowow.
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