HarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics. ‘Second to the right … and then straight on till morning!’ Desperate to hear bedtime stories, Peter Pan waits outside the nursery window of Wendy, John and Michael Darling. When Peter asks Wendy to fly with him to Neverland, the Darling children are whisked away to a world of adventure – of daring fairies, … fairies, wondrous mermaids and The Lost Boys.But there is danger in Neverland too: the villainous Captain Hook is out for revenge and will stop at nothing to take it. Poignant and unforgettable, J. M. Barrie’s classic tale is one of the greatest works of children’s literature of the last century. Its imaginative scope, tender humour and vivid characters will enchant adults and children alike. Published in association with Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity.
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I remembered enjoying this story much more the first time I read it, and I’m honestly wondering if I even finished it that time.
The version of the book I have is ‘Peter and Wendy’ and ‘Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens’.
‘Peter and Wendy’ is much more enjoyable, and probably would have gotten a 4 rating, but the second story, ‘Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens’ dropped the overall rating to 3. It just didn’t have the same magical feeling as ‘Peter and Wendy’, and I struggled to get through it. For the rest of my review, I will just be talking about ‘Peter and Wendy’.
‘Peter and Wendy’ started off great. I really enjoyed the whimsy of this book, and thought it was very magical and enjoyable. As I continued reading, I just started to get a little bored with the story, but I think it was more the fact that I was ready to move on to another book. My attention for this book just ran out rather quickly.
I do feel this is a book that is better read slowly, so you can really understand the writing style and language, and just absorb it all.
I might revisit this book in the future, but probably will not reread ‘Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens’.
5 stars. I could not find my exact version of this book on Goodreads. I have the World Cloud Classics edition of Peter Pan, which includes two books/stories: “Peter and Wendy” and “Peter in the Kensington Gardens.” I only read “Peter and Wendy,” but I plan to read “Peter in the Kensington Gardens” another time.
Now that I have gotten that out of the way…I loved reading this story. It made me feel like a little kid again. While I had only read shortened versions of Peter Pan and watched the Disney movie as a child, this filled me with childhood nostalgia. I’m glad I finally read the whole story. It is so whimsical and fantastical, as it takes the reader on a journey to Neverland that they will never forget. I couldn’t give this book less than five stars, but I think that’s the nostalgia speaking.
Before I get into the review… it took me forever to go through all the editions of Peter Pan listed on Goodreads. While I suppose it’s not too important to get the right version, I was shocked at how many there were, as well as that this was a longer series with multiple books. I guess I always knew that, but when I read it, it was just the Peter Pan book, which I believe was the third in the series. I could be wrong… nonetheless… wow… and it’s review time and let’s do some soaring…
There is so much I could say about this book. I could write a formal review. I could compare the story to the TV and film adaptions. I could cover the cartoons. BTW, the most interesting one for me was “Once Upon a Time’s” portrayal of Peter. So dark… LOVED IT. But that said, to me, it’s a children’s tale with a huge primary lesson: We never want to grow up, but we have to…
And that’s what I’ll focus on. This book must be read to children a few times over the years. I’d start first when they are about 4 or 5, and then show the cartoon versions. Let them absorb it and think about it. And then again when they are 7 or 8, helping them understand what it means to grow up. And then again when they are about 12 or 13… and make them do a book report on it, even outside of school. It’s a lesson that must be taught young.
Growing up is scary. But so is not growing up. There’s a fine balance between finding the time to be free and open, enjoying life and staying away from one’s fears. But you must also learn what is necessary to become a good, solid and functioning citizen of the society.
What I love about this story is the amount of interpretations you can absorb from the story, the characters, the setting and the action. Just when you think you’ve got them all down, another view point comes into play — and you have to re-think what the moral purpose of the book is about.
Or did Barrie intend it to just be a fun trip for kids… I’m not so sure we’ll ever know!
I can’t decide if J.M. Barrie thinks children are despicable or delightful. Maybe both. Probably both. It’s been a long time coming for me to experience the original Peter Pan rather than the Disney movie. And while I was expecting a lot of differences, I was surprised by how much was the same. The amazing thing about Barrie’s story is, as I was listening, I could see why so many different versions of Peter Pan now exist. Neverland is amazing, of course, but the characters are so uinque and yet utterly relatable and so distinct and yet still hold such capacity for a different writer to take them and make them their own. Peter Pan as a story is as complicated and multitudinous as the character himself. All in all, if you’re familiar with any version of Peter Pan I’d recommend checking out the original just to see what started it all. Barrie is a fun author and I love his narration of the story, with his witticisms and commentary on the nature of children and mothers. He is at once a cynic and an optimist. The book it self is at once hilarious and tragic. What massive contradictions in a children’s book! But, then, isn’t that rather how life is?
I can’t believe that I’d never actually read the original Peter Pan before! Such a delightful story, and a wonderful retelling, with a full cast and sound effects.
The British children (Wendy, John and Michael) during the WWII siege of London were reminiscent of the Chronicles of Narnia. That was apparently a very fertile time and place for children’s literature. Like the Penvensie children, the Darling’s mother Mary intended to send them to the countryside to get away from the bombing. Mary had told them stories all their growing-up years of Peter Pan, whom she had met as a girl and who had invited her to run away with him, but she had declined. This captured especially Wendy’s imagination, and she decided to write him a letter inviting him to visit her. Little did she know, he already came to visit her nightly. Instead of going to the countryside, they fly through the window to Neverland with Peter–despite the jealous Tinkerbell’s attempts to harm Wendy.
Once in Neverland, they meet the Lost Boys, who are so hungry for a mother that they decide that Wendy, herself a little girl, should become the mother they are missing. Peter is then appointed as their father, and while we never find out how old Wendy really is, it’s implied that she falls for Peter romantically. Peter, meanwhile, only thinks of her as a “dutiful son.” (Now I understand better where the term “Peter Pan Syndrome” comes from, for men who never want to grow up and are unwilling to commit!) The Lost Boys, Peter, Wendy, Michael, and John go on a number of adventures, interacting with the Lost Girls (led by Tiger Lily), the mermaids in the lagoon, and of course, Captain Hook and his pirates.
A story like this has an unresolvable conflict: the Darlings cannot both stay in Neverland and also return home to their frantic mother. And Peter, being Peter, cannot choose to return to the ordinary world where he no longer belongs, no matter how he might feel about Wendy (and it’s sort of implied that he has feelings for her too, though he doesn’t seem to know it). So the ending is bittersweet. But as children’s books don’t include a great deal of introspection, the sadness is minimized. It’s mostly just a fun, lighthearted adventure.
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It was lighthearted and fun. Although ***SPOILER ALERT*** for some reason I had it in my head that Peter Pan came to the real world, grew up and married Wendy, and I was disappointed when Wendy married somebody else and Peter was still hanging out with her great granddaughter at the end. Did I think this because of the movie “Hook”? No idea…