【推荐2】Charlotte’s Web, a best-selling children’ s book, was described as a story of friendship on a farm. If you’ve already read the book, you may know about the friendship that grows between Wilbur, a small pig, and Charlotte, a spider. But you may not know that the author, E. B. White, was also a friend of animals.

In Charlotte’s Web, a spider saves a pig from being killed. In real life, the author had tried to save a pig too, but failed. A few years before Charlotte’s Web, White wrote an article about caring for a dying pig on his farm. Even though White raised the pig to make bacon, he found himself trying to save its life.

Although farm pigs were born to die, White had mixed feelings about this fact. “I began to feel sorry for the pig because he was born to die,” he recalled. “This made me sad. So I started thinking of ways to save the pig’s life.” Soon the story of Wilbur was born.

Charlotte, the heroine of the book, was also born of the observations on White’s farm. “I had been watching a big, gray spider at work and was impressed by how clever she was at weaving its nets,” he remembered. But what would happen if a clever spider could weave not only webs, but also words? Charlotte’s Web explores this possibility.

In a letter to a young reader, White wrote, “In real life, a spider doesn’t speak. But the real life is also a life of imagination. And although my stories are imaginary, I like to think that there is some truth in them — truth about the way people and animals feel, think and act.”

【推荐3】There was once a farmer who had a large field of corn. He worked the land with the greatest care, for he wanted to sell the corn and buy good things for his family. But he saw his corn dry up, for no rain fell, and he feared that he was to have no crop. Every morning he went out to the field and looked at the thirsty stalks and wished for the rain to fall.

One day, as he stood looking up at the sky, two little raindrops saw him, and one said to the other: “Look at that farmer. I feel very sorry for him. He took such pains with his field of corn, and now it is drying up. I wish I might help him.”

“Yes,” said the other, “but you are only a little raindrop. What can you do? You can’t wet even one hill.”

“Well,” said the first, “I know, to be sure, I cannot do much; but perhaps I can cheer the farmer a little, and I am going to do my best. I’ll go to the field to show my good will, if I can’t do anything more. Here I go!”

The first raindrop had no sooner started for the field than the second one said: “Well, if you really insist upon going, I think I will go, too. Here I come!” And down went the raindrops. One came — pat —on the farmer’s nose, and one fell on a thirsty stalk of corn.

“Dear me,” said the farmer, “what’s that? A raindrop! Where did it come from? I do believe we shall have a shower.”

By this time a great many raindrops had come together to see what all the commotion was about. When they saw the two kind little drops going down to cheer the farmer, and water his corn, one said:“If you two are going on such a good errand, I’ll go, too!” And down he came. “And I!” said another. “And I!” And so said they all, until a whole shower came and the corn was watered. Then the corn grew and ripened — all because one little raindrop tried to do what it could.