Bridge to Terabithia

I know there has been a recent movie based on this book, but I never saw it--never even wanted to. The previews were all too mystical for my liking--too forgetful of God and worshipful of His Creation and the mystical make-believe world instead......

But the book. the book.......hmmmm......

I've been pre-reading a lot of the juvenile and young people books in our library so I can know what may or may not be good for my 8yo dd {reading at a 5th grade level with mostly understanding}. She cannot get enough reading material for her liking and would be lazy all day with a book if I would let her. The problem is usually that she is just reading for the entertainment value and it could just be fluff---no real substance. Sometimes, that is okay, but I know there is better use of her time.

A REVIEW
When I picked up one of our library's copies, I noticed some blacked-out words. Someone had kindly inked over the 5-6 words that were questionable in their mind. Indeed, after looking intensely and reading the context, I saw these were words I definitely did NOT want my children to be reading, let alone KNOWING existed in this manner ~LOL~ If used as a read-aloud, I could easily replace or skip these few choice words. I could also explain them, but I do not see the benefit Paterson could have been thinking of when including them. The setting and mind-set of poverty was captured without the swearing, I believe, although I see the truth behind their usage.

And then I began......"Ba-room, ba-room, ba-room, baripity, baripity, baripity, baripity-Good. His dad had the pickup going..." The story is less about this magical land presented in the movie previews and more about the growing up of an impoverished young boy. It is his story. His thoughts. His family life. His friendship with a neighbor girl that brought him into a new growth. She shows him how to imagine--how to think. It is amazingly REAL, capturing who this young boy IS and the difference between his world and his friend's, yet all the while, the similarities. They share a bond of friendship that goes beyond any teasing from friends and they create a magical playland in the woods they dub Terabithia. It is a retreat--a playhouse--a playground where they rule as King and Queen. Yes, they spend hours of every day imaginable there in their wonderland, but the book does not dwell on all the aspects. There are imaginary creatures and they "pray" to the gods of the forest, yes, but not because that is their religion---that is what is found in the classic books she informs him about.

Church is only attended on Easter and Christmas and is a drudgery for a little boy who hates being stuffed into new clothes and trying not to snore through what he sees as boring. Heaven is what is obtained by believing in God, not a sacrifice made and committing yourself to Him. There are many questions raised for discussion about religion and Truth, but not explored enough to leave a distaste in my mouth for wrong explanations. It is left pretty much open-ended. These kids are uninformed on the matter.

Warning: I cried. I will not tell you the ending and I will not tell you what I cried long and hard about---but I was touched and the well-written award-winning book "Bridge to Terabithia" definitely has some depth and can be made into a good school read, IMO, although I don't know how long I will wait till letting my children have at it.

Apparently, there are all sorts of study guides that can be found also, like this one at Amazon, although I haven't looked at any of them.
And now, I am curious about the movie. Not for my kids, but for me---anyone see it? Does it go more along with the book than the previews let on?