Title: Tuck Everlasting
Author: Natalie Babbitt
Publication Date: 2020 (first published in 1975)
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Format: Paperback|224 pages
Tuck Everlasting is the timeless story of an eleven years old girl, Winnie Foster, who finds herself involved with a family who have mistakenly drank water from a spring and became immortal eighty-seven years ago. Winnie lives a tightly controlled life, she is constantly checked on by her parents and grandmother so she yearns to see the world outside her gate. She decides to leave her life behind and explore the woods next door where she encounters the unusual Tuck family.
I believe Natalie Babbitt does an excellent job creating a humorous and moving story that draws the reader in on the first paragraphs. As the novel progresses she keeps providing beautifully descriptive paragraphs and vivid nature descriptions that I felt are a great way to introduce children, as it is a children’s book, to lyrical prose. The playful and magical writing takes the reader into a journey of wonder and confusion, which is exactly how the author manages to draw a picture of how life without death can possibly work.
Although it is a good book that explores themes such as constant change, the connection between life and death and certain values of humanity, I didn’t feel like it was a five star read. The Tuck family for me represented a gathering of stereotypes which made me feel as the author never allowed these characters to become realistic. All things considered, I found the book to be a quiet read. For some reason for me it had a sleepy feel. Although I enjoyed it I was left with a sad feeling but not because it has an actual sad ending but rather because it didn’t as I expected it to.
Török J. Sándor 