Charlotte's Web: E.B. White

This Simple Tale of Friendship

“But it’s unfair”, cried Fern. “The pig couldn’t help being born small, could it? If I had been very small at birth, would you have killed me?"
Mr Arable smiled. “Certainly not,” he said, looking down at his daughter with love. “But this different. A little girl is one thing; a little runty pig is another.”

“I see no difference,” replied Fern, still hanging on to the axe. “This is the most terrible case of injustice I ever heard of.”

“Well, I don’t like to spread bad news,” said the sheep, “but they’re fattening you up because they’re going to kill you, that’s why.”
“They’re going to what?” screamed Wilbur.
“Kill you. Turn you into smoked bacon and ham,” continued the old sheep.
“Stop!” screamed Wilbur. “I don’t want to die! Save me, somebody! Save me!”
“Be quiet, Wilbur!” said Charlotte, who had been listening to this awful conversation.“I can’t be quiet,” screamed Wilbur, racing up and down.

“I don’t want to be killed. I don’t want to die. Is it true what the old sheep says, Charlotte? Is it true they are going to kill me when the cold weather comes?”

“You shall not die,” said Charlotte, briskly.
“What? Really?” cried Wilbur. “Who’s going to save me?”

“I am,” said Charlotte.

“…The message I wrote in my web, praising Wilbur, has been received. The Zuckermans have fallen for it, and so has everybody else. Zuckerman thinks Wilbur is an unusual pig, and therefore he won’t kill him and eat him. I dare say my trick will work and Wilbur’s life can be saved.”
“Hurray!” cried everybody [all the animals in the meeting]
“Thank you very much,” said Charlotte. “Now I called this meeting in order to get suggestions. I need new ideas for the web. People are already getting sick of reading the words ‘SOME PIG!’ Any suggestions for a new slogan?”
“How about ‘Pig Supreme’?” asked one of the lambs.

“No good,” said Charlotte. “It sounds like a rich dessert.”

Next morning, Wilbur arose and stood beneath the web. He breathed the morning air into his lungs. Drops of dew, catching the sun, made the web stand out clearly.

Everybody stood at the pigpen and stared at the web and read the word, over and over, while Wilbur, who really felt terrific, stood quietly swelling out his chest and swinging his snout from side to side.“Terrific!” breathed Zuckerman, in joyful admiration. “Edith, you better phone the reporter on the Weekly Chronicle and tell him what has happened. He will want to know about this. He may want to bring a photographer. There isn’t a pig in the whole state that is as terrific as our pig.”

“Why did you do all this for me?” he asked. “I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done anything for you.”

“You have been a friend,” replied Charlotte.

One seemingly simple tale about fate and love, all told through an unlikely friendship between a practical spider and one endearing runt - their adventures, made ever more charming by the illustrations (by Garth Williams - PUFFIN BOOKS).

Like the story, to me, love and friendship come with no strings attached and need no reading between the lines.

It is also one of my saddest tale read - twisted my heartstrings. Love and friendship has no forever. They come packaged with transition and loss - what matters most is what had been done.

Say hi and thank you to your bestest friend today.

- Completed 17 July 2006 -

Roald Dahl: Loony! Wacky! Nutty! Dandy!!!

I hope it comes no surprise to you - Roald Dahl is whom I am touching on for this entry. Did you guess correctly??

While searching for inspirations, I thought about the first time I discovered-held my first Dahl's book, got hooked thereafter. The incident was so that I can't help but related that akin to fate. Sometimes, affinity just hits, no? Maybe this kinda sounded so drama-mama but THAT'S the way I felt with certain incidents in my life. Even for discovering a read.

Please allow me to digress and indulge on why discovering Roald Dahl by pure chance is extraordinary for me. Books ain't exactly a fad with us kids during my upper primary school days unless Tin Tin is what you were referring to. The school's library ain't my hangout spot but it was there, I came upon "Danny the Champion of The World" when I tried to hide in the library from my friends because I was secretly crying self-pitifully from some petty friendship matters. I picked a book non-commitantly, trying my darnest to hide my tear-stained face. Somehow, the baby picture in the first page caught my attention and hooked to Roald Dahl thereafter I was, definitely.

Danny The Champion of The World - My First Dahl's Read

Starting with Danny the Champion of The World, I was soon full speed into his other titles. I love most of the children's reads and to name a few favourite standouts will be of course The Witches, BFG, Boy and Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. Though I love Dahl's short adult twisting stories, they never packed the full oomph for me. I must admit I never like and finish his Going Solo and A Piece of Cake. Though these two touched on Dahl's route to become a full fledged children's author, I felt it was not important for me to know anyhow. Not interesting to me.

I must say Roald Dahl's is really one of the most creative children's author for me. The way he makes plain, good enough virtues in children loud and heroic enough to make a difference with their life or turn of events with his loony thoughts, I thought really quite incredible. Danny the Champion of The World touches the life of a little boy ensconced in life's simple pleasures, living in a small wagon with just his dad for companionship, conjured an incredulous way of poaching partridges with a stroke of ingenuity that earned him respect from his dad and the rest of the villagers who all hated the snobbish landowner.

BFG, The Witches and Charlie and The Chocolate Factory are not to be missed if you want to know the full extent of Dahl's mastery in catapulting you to his world of wackiness, dandiest and his nuttiest.

The Witches - I love this story!

Charlie and The Chocolate Factory

I scarcely salvaged my BFG, hehehe...

His children's stories are all written from the viewpoint of a plain good child who is either impoverished or mistreated by an adult AND there is always the presence of a teacher or headmaster who will dealt THAT stroke of that cane. Apparently, tis some true scars from Dahl's childhood himself (Read: Dahl's - "Boy") and I personally thought he was championing the rights to end corporal punishment and the bullying of the weaker children in schools. In other words, you learnt being strong physically does not mean you will get respect or natural authority. The main character's stroke of luck changes with the entrance of an adult / fantasy creature who will eventually makes a big difference in their life and vice versa.

Sophie from BFG saved England from the guzzling, man-eating giants with the help from the reticent Big Friendly Giant whom was brought out of his own shyness with Sophie's friendship. The boy in The Witches saved all of us children, from turning into rats by thwarting the witches' plan with his Norwegian grandmother and do not mind being a rat the rest of his life so he may live as long as her. I find this so touching.

The Witches

As for Charlie, he makes his fortune with Willy Wonka - the candiest man in the world whom found the right heir to his candy kingdom!! Don't you think it's so clever and funny about the square candies that looked round?? Go check it out yourself if you do not know what I am talking about here.

Roald Dahl's story is literally littered with un-dictionary phrasing and poems as his trademark style, much like how Stephen King's does with his trademark f*cks all over his novel. Some fine examples below:

One Dandy, Loony Dahl's Poems From C&TCF

Dahl's Trademark?

May not sit well with some adults who felt were not proper english to begin with but what the hell, it's us children who are tickled and amused by the names of the food the giants eat, the kind of products that makes up the potion in George's Marvelous Medicine, the strange dreams captured by BFG and transported to our dreamland. Who needs to grow up so fast??

The Nightmare - BFG

One of the Dreams' Descriptions - BFG

I do enjoy Dahl's more macabre, adult stories from Henry Sugar and The Unexpected Tales. Twisted and more edged plots though they are mostly short adult stories. I am more a sucker for long serials for short novels like Sherlock Holmes and so Dahl's shorter stories is to me is merely a more disturbing though kinda pleasing read. Like how I will always remember the man who turns into a bee for consuming too much royal jelly? The man who bet his little finger for a Cadillac if his lighter lights up continuously for ten times? The battered housewife who escapes the gallows by roasting the murder weapon and served the shank of lamb to the investigating sheriffs? Or even Henry Sugar, an incorrigible gambler turned good - who had initially tried to gain yoga powers for evil profits? I thought the way it just disturbs you so subtly mentally... his adults stories is a different genre from his children's stories.

Henry Sugar & Other Stories

Dahl's stories, thinly illustrated by Quentin Blake's are so mutually unexclusive - I can't find any other children's authors even close to Dahl's style till today.

Dahl's leap of imagination, his use of creative words and the children's rights he subtly champions for - I can only conclude, truly childhood reminiscences for me.

Quentin Blake's illustration - From The Witches showing the boy turning into a rat

- Completed 15 July 2006 -

Enid Blyton: The Mother Of All Children's Stories

When I was young and naive, I wished...

... Mother would ask me to get out of her way by packing a picnic basket for me, full of sandwiches, a pound of chocolate cake and a meat pie. The pinic basket must be covered by a checked cloth and I would pick ripe blueberries along the way to the forest for the picnic with my doll.

... I was enrolled in a boarding school where I lived, ate, played, rode horses and milked cows with all my friends under one roof. Mother would send me pocket money and sweet goodies from home as treats.

... Mother would send me to bed without dinner as punishment for bad behaviour.

... I would stumble across an old rickety shop full of magical items on my way to the nearby provision shop while running errands for Mother.

... I could invite friends over for tea and the cook would prepare scones, shortcakes, jelly, brownies and tea in quaint little teacups with matching saucers.

... Silky the fairy, Dame Washalot, the Saucepan man, Mr Whatsisname and the Angry Pixie were my secret friends. Moonface would offer me his Toffee Shock and a ride down the slippery slip on the big fat cushion.

... my best friends and I would unwittingly, get caught in situations turned adventures and be famed as a group of young investigators.

... my toys would come alive at night and fairy folks would visit them and sometimes held midnight paties. I would stumble upon them on my way for the night's pee and be invited to the parties!!!

Very, very wishful but nonetheless delightful thoughts. If I had evoked your childhood fanciful wishes much like those above, like me, you must had been a young Enid Blyton's fan as well!

Invitation To A Wizard's Birthday Party

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Since young, when it comes to choosing children's authors, I have two I call favourites. Both British authors, both masters of children's make-believe and both enthralled me with their more-than-rich imagination. Their stories opened a whole new world for me and I mean that not just in literal sense.

Other than the above, however, I personally felt both can't be more different as children's literature writers, in terms of the realms of their imaginativeness and fanciful inventiveness. As my subject title indicates, one's none other than Enid Blyton and the other, a male Brit author of which his stories I hope to touch on for my next entry. I 'll let in a little fun and keep the identity secret for now and see if you guess the author correctly. A little clue, this blog is named after one of his famous verbal quotes, it's an easy guess by the way. In my opinion, his stories are forerunner for children's English titles until JK Rowling comes along.

From ages seven to nine, I only wanted to read anything by Enid Blyton. My then best friend was my supplier and ticket to Enid Blyton's world. She had a mini library at home and thank my good fortune, a generous spirit too. *Hey Tracy Gan, if you are reading this, you never knew you played a part in this too yeah?*

If Hans Christian Andersen and the brothers Grimm introduced a land of princesses and magic spells to me, Enid Blyton captivated my childhood with old Western folkore of fairies, brownies, pixies and gnomes. Other than that, I was also much intrigued and in love with the charms of old Great Britain. A foreign but charming culture to me. Being an Asian and had never travel before at that point of time, I always wondered how scones, shortcakes and mudpie looked and tasted like. Was mudpie made of mud? Why can't my mother allow me tea parties? Why golliwogs were never on sale in our toy shops? Why did children eat their supper at 7 o' clock? Why was it that my school had no horse-riding lessons or nature walks as part of our lessons?

Scones, Shortcakes or Mudpie?
(Pic Taken From: The Wishing Chair)

Going To School By Train?
(Pic Taken From: The Naughtiest Girl In School Again)

I Had Always Liked Golliwog
(Pic Taken From: Amelia Jane)

A Toy Party Illustration
(Pic Taken From: Amelia Jane)

However much bewildered I were, somehow, I kept all these thoughts to myself. You can also say, I loved my day dreamings.

I Felt It Was My Secret Too!
(Pic Taken From: The Wishing Chair)

Some of my favourite EB's titles were serials like The Faraway Tree, Malory Towers, The Famous Five, Brer Rabbit and The Wishing Chair. There is this singular book titled The Book of Fairies which I prized above all and deemed as a collector's item. It's a personal choice because this book had me lived in the world of fairies for a while. I even believed the baby fern leaves curl because fairies sleep in them at night to keep warm. Amazes me how naive I could be!

The Wishing Chair Series

Book Cover - The Naughtiest Girl In School Again

Book Cover - Amelia Jane

I like Enid Blyton's stories being fancifully simple and sweet. I also love how Enid Blyton kept my young imagination alive. It comforted me when the naughty children / pixie / toy got their punishment, learned their lesson and the story end on a happy and sometimes subtly moralistic note.

Elizabeth's Redeeming Words
(Taken From: The Naughtiest Girl In School)

A Typical Enid Blyton's Ending
(Taken From: Amelia Jane)

An Illustration From The Wishing Chair - Children and Chinny The Pixie Escaping From The Police In The Land of Goodies

Years passed, still most of EB's stories remained vividly on my mind. I have re-read some of EB's titles and I'm glad they never fail to bring back happy childhood memories.

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Somehow, when I started writing this entry, I got quite curious if little boys do read and liked Enid Blyton. I don't remember my male classmates in my primary classes reading anything by the way. Except for Marvel comics. I was afraid my thoughts may have skewed towards a more feminine perspective. So I roped in Mr. Gecko for a short interview who very gamely provides me an insight and had me concluding testosterone-charged boys can and do fall prey to Enid Blyton's charm too.

Does reading stories by Enid Blyton considered part of your happy childhood memories?

Mr. Gecko: Never thought about Enid Blyton since grown up. *I was frowning*

But you enjoyed reading

Mr. Gecko: Yup

What were some of your favourite Enid Blyton's titles?

Mr. Gecko: The Three Investigator by Alfred Hitchcock *this is irrelevant to my question you know, Mr. Gecko*, The Wishing Chair and The Faraway Tree series.

Can you list some fond memories from reading Enid Blyton?

Mr. Gecko: Most of the stories sound like good fun, like the idea of going for a picnic, describing what the children prepared and brought to the pinic. Had the same desire to do the same as the children too!Liked some of the foreign "cultures" described in her stories like having a glass of warm milk before bedtime.I also liked the illustrations from her book which helped me to imagine some favourite characters better like Moonface and the Saucepan Man, somehow, I also liked Enid Blyton's distinct signature fonts on the front cover of every book. so I could immediately recognised her books from others.

What is most notable about Enid Blyton's stories?

Mr. Gecko: Her stories teach people to be good.

- Completed 08 February 2006 -