The three way chats, in which they are joined by other animals, about web spinning, themselves, other humans-are as often informative as amusing, and the whole tenor of appealing wit and pathos will make fine entertainment for reading aloud, too. And as the wonderful Charlotte does die, the sadness is tempered by the promise of more spiders next spring. The last word, when Wilbur is about to win a show prize and Charlotte is about to die from building her egg sac, is 'Humble'. At the news of Wilbur's forthcoming slaughter, campaigning Charlotte, to the astonishment of people for miles around, spins words in her web. Daily, Fern visits the Zuckermans to sit and muse with Wilbur and with the clever pen spider Charlotte, who befriends him when he is lonely and downcast. Young Fern Arable pleads for the life of runt piglet Wilbur and gets her father to sell him to a neighbor, Mr. Characters seem to default to white, with the occasional surname hinting at ethnic difference.Ī successful juvenile by the beloved New Yorker writer portrays a farm episode with an imaginative twist that makes a poignant, humorous story of a pig, a spider and a little girl. Even though readers are transported to 1986, the characters’ social, emotional, and familial struggles will feel familiar and timely. Kelly writes a heartfelt story of family and the bond of siblings. Each chapter begins with a date in January 1986, then divides into short vignettes following each sibling on that day. But when the Challenger disaster occurs, Bird finds herself in need of the support she’s been giving. Bird is enthralled with the space mission and decides she’s going to be a shuttle commander one day. It’s January 1986, and their teacher is gearing them up for the launch of the space shuttle Challenger. The Thomas household is toxic with their parents’ constant fighting, and Bird feels like she has to keep their family from malfunctioning altogether. Bird likes tinkering with machines but feels invisible. Fitch is good at video games but bad at controlling his temper.

He isn’t good at anything, and now he’s repeating seventh grade with his two younger siblings. The Thomas siblings-13-year-old Cash and 12-year-old twins Fitch and Bird-all struggle to navigate the doubts of middle school and their dysfunctional family. Three siblings face their middle school problems as they learn about space.

We dream of space