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Jess Aarons has made it his goal to be the fastest boy in the fifth grade. All summer long, he would push himself to the point of exhaustion in the Virginia heat trying to run faster and faster. Little did he know, new competition has moved into town– her name is Leslie Burke, also ten years old, and she can run faster than anybody in the fifth grade. The boys eventually refuse to race anymore because they can’t stand being schooled by this new girl!

However, Jess finds her strangely interesting. For one, she is a great athlete; she’s also funny and has a rich imagination. Her folks don’t own a television set, and their house is filled with books. Soon, even though everybody teases them to no end, Jess and Leslie form a magical friendship. They create their own realm in the woods which they name Terabithia. The only way to get into Terabithia is by swinging on the old rope swing they find attached to a crab apple tree. No one else is allowed to enter the kingdom, and no one else may know about it…until something unexpected occurs, and Terabithia is never again the same.

Bridge to Terabithia by Katharine Paterson earned a Newberry Award in 1978. It is an unforgettable story of imagination, magic, loyalty and determination. It is a story of a legendary friendship.