The layers that are found in “Charlotte’s Web” never cease to amaze me. I read this book annually, or so it seems, because it draws me to a craftmanship unparelleled in most modern reads. Maybe this is in part because today books are published at an overwhelming rate and the overload of the current selection makes me miss out on the exquisite books of the 21st century. This book, however, draws me in time and again because of the virtue and wisdom of both the narrator and Charlotte, the winsome and innocent Wilbur, and the truths of nature; how it is so gentle and soft in spring and with new birth, and at other times, so harsh and cold and empty. White helps the reader to find hope in the midst of these inevitable sorrows, in the form of companionship and love, the act of being with someone when they are down and out, and the act of helping the helpless too. It’s strange how helping, when it is good helping, finds us more peaceful and happy than almost anything ever could.
