Tuck Everlasting
By: Natalie Babbitt
Pages: 139

The Tucks have a secret in their family that only they knew, until 10-year-old Winnie Foster accidentally stumble upon it. One morning in the first week of August, Winnie became fed up with her rich family and decided to run away into the woods. There, she found Jesse Tuck drinking from a mysterious spring coming from out of the tree. So the Tucks had no choice but to bring her home to explain their secret to her and why she mustn’t at all cost tell anyone of this. Apparently, the Tuck family has the gift (or the curse) of living forever. They were granted eternal life after drinking from this mysterious spring. Unfortunately, Winnie wasn’t the only one getting the inside scoop of this story. A strange man in a yellow suit was listening to every single word to what the Tucks had to say; and he intended on marketing the spring water for a fortune. What's more is that in the end, it all came down to Winnie and her decision of drinking the spring water or not.

This book was truly amazing! Even though it is considered a children book, there were issues in the story which can be discussed beyond the boundary of children; such as the meaning of living for all eternity. Sure, lots of people don’t want to die, but have they thought about the consequences which come from living forever? – this story explains it all. It was also a beautifully written book with rich imagery and poetic language (tons of metaphors and similes were used). And since I just recently stopped reading the Clique series, this book was a nice change compared to all the trendy fashion and girls with attitudes. What’s more is that the movie for this book is just as good, and possibly even better. It definitely did the story justice. Okay, maybe it’s time to stop raving about how good Tuck Everlasting is and just end it with a rating which sums up everything I had said.
Rating:9.5/ 10 (I would have given it a 10 if it was a *bit* more descriptive with the story extended, but seeing that it was a book intended for kids, that probably explains why the small amount of pages – only 100 something)

s.t.e.p.h.i.e.
volunteer hours: 3 (total – 40 ½)