The Story of Charlotte's Web

The Story of Charlotte's Web E. B. White's Eccentric Life in Nature and the Birth of an American Classic

Michael Sims2011
Traces the influences of E.B. White's early 20th-century childhood on a farm and his love for animals on his career, offering insight into the creation of Charlotte's Web as it evolved from an early draft and was shaped by his scientific research and friendship with legendary editor Ursula Nordstrom. By the author of Apollo's Fire. 40,000 first printing.
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Reviews

Photo of Jeni Enjaian
Jeni Enjaian@jenienjaian
3 stars
Oct 30, 2021

So...I waited way too long to write the review. (Forgot that I had not actually written the review since I had already filmed the recap for my monthly wrap up.) I loved this book when I started reading it. Sims filled the narrative with whimsy fitting for a biography of the author of Charlotte's Web. However, a couple things ended up making this just an average read for me. First, Sims forecasted that he would change how he referred to E.B. White since White himself ended up adopting the nickname of Andy when in college. Even though Sims forecasted this, it still felt disconcerting and felt like I had started to read the biography of a different person. Second, the pacing of the narrative felt highly uneven progressing in fits and starts with heavy emphasis on the nitty gritty of the writing of Charlotte's Web, appropriate, yet not the style he had given to the rest of the book. Overall, I found this a "meh" book, not terrible but not great either.

Photo of Lloyd Dalton
Lloyd Dalton@daltonlp
4 stars
Sep 16, 2021