Tuck Everlasting | Natalie Babbitt | ISBN-13: 978-0374480097 | Publication Date: November 1, 1985 | Print Length: 144 pages

Doomed to—or blessed with—eternal life after drinking from a magic spring, the Tuck family wanders about trying to live as inconspicuously and comfortably as they can. When ten-year-old Winnie Foster stumbles on their secret, the Tucks take her home and explain why living forever at one age is less a blessing that it might seem. Complications arise when Winnie is followed by a stranger who wants to market the spring water for a fortune.

This short novel, so moving and artfully composed, first appeared a generation ago. It has since become a young adult classic. Rarely does one find a book with such prose. Flawless in both style and structure, it is rich in imagery and punctuated with light fillips of humor. The author manipulates her plot deftly, dealing with six main characters brought together because of a spring whose waters can bestow everlasting life. Underlying the drama is the dilemma of the age-old desire for perpetual youth.

An American Library Association Notable Children’s Book | Winner of a Christopher Award for Books for Young Readers