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Bridge to Terabithia was a pleasant surprise. It happened to be my birthday, so as we stood outside the movie theatre in the mall staring at the marquis, my two girlfriends obligingly let me pick. I hadn't heard that much about it, but I knew that it was a young adult fantasy adventure (my favorite), and the movie started a little while later, so we bought tickets, mogged the mall to kill an hour and went in.

I was not expecting such a lovely story. Like most people, I suspect, I was expecting lots of computer generated special effects and very little acting, so I was immediately impressed with the realistic plot and the unknown, talented cast. The complex emotions in Bridge to Terabithia must have presented these young but capable actors with a number of difficult challenges, and they managed it beautifully. These are not comic book characters or mythical beings with supernatural abilities. They are very real people with normal daily problems, yet they must also be able to rule an imaginary realm.

The story revolves around a fifth grader called Jess who lives in an old farmhouse near the woods with his large family and attends a rural school. Jess is the son of a strict, work-a-day hardware store manager who is forced to pinch pennies and who expects his family to obey his rules for their own good. As a result, Jess takes some time to warm up to the new girl in his class, who at first seems flighty and strange. His father's influence is the reason that Jess takes a while to open his mind to the idea that there may be an imaginary world waiting for him. Jess' new friend Leslie, however, is the daughter of writers. Her parents are creative people who encourage their daughter's imagination, but they also move around a lot and ignore her for long periods of time while they are working on new books. Consequently, Leslie's imagination has run a bit wild. It's difficult for her to fit in at yet another new school, but she is accustomed to the awkwardness and doesn't let it stifle her. Almost against his will, Leslie chooses Jess as a friend and leads him into her very well-developed fantasy world where they reign as king and queen.

I recently finished reading InkHeart, a book of the same genre that I also enjoyed immensely, particularly because of its perfectly balanced use of fantasy and reality. Terabithia uses fantasy conventions with the same masterful touch; neither too much nor too little. The fantasy creatures and special effects are present, but they are not

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