Review of Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Peter and the Starcatchers is a prequel to Peter Pan. The title character, Peter, is in fact Peter Pan, and this book is about how an ordinary boy became the flying, eternally young boy we are familiar with from J.M. Barrie's story. That, in itself, should make you interested in this book. We love to learn about beginnings and how things came to be. In the story we know, Peter Pan starts out life as a mystery. So when someone comes along offering to tell us what those origins are, we're interested. And skeptical. After all, J.M. Barrie died in 1937. We know this isn't the origins he had in mind for Peter Pan, if he had any at all. The writers of this book are simply making these origins up, so it's really their story, not Barrie's, that we're reading. We're really reading the book not because we want to know the origin of Peter Pan, but because we want to know the authors' version of the origin of Peter Pan. So, as with most other books I read, my decision to read Peter and the Starcatchers began not with the subject matter, but with the authors.
Plural, in this case. Peter and the Starcatchers is co-authored by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. I'll admit right away that I don't know too much about Ridley Pearson. I know that he's a mystery writer, but I haven't read any of his books. Dave Barry is another story. I've read quite a bit of what he's written, and enjoyed it all. Barry is a humor columnist, and if you're not familiar with him, you need to start reading his columns. Dave Barry is very funny, and if you read his works, both fiction and "non-fiction," you'll find that the humor is non-stop. I sometimes find I can't breathe for laughing. It was his name on the cover that convinced me to buy this book.
Peter and the Starcatchers is funny, but it is not as funny as most books by Dave Barry. While you'll occasionally chuckle and even laugh out loud, you won't find yourself laughing helplessly while trying to catch your breath. You may consider this a weakness of the book, especially if you bought it looking for Dave Barry-style humor. However, the reduced humor is purposeful, because this book is more serious than most of Dave Barry's books. That may seem odd, considering that it is putatively a children's book, but I don't really consider it a children's book. It is a common mistake to assume that any book about children must be for children, and thus Peter and the Starcatchers is classified as a children's book, in the same way as Harry Potter is. I wouldn't recommend any of these books for young children, since while they stay away from sexual themes, there do contain elements of violence and horror. According to the cover, Peter and the Starcatchers is for children ages ten and up. At that age, I was reading classics of American Literature in school, The Lord of the Rings for my own enjoyment, and other books that no one considers children's, or young adults', books. At that age I think it's helpful to think less about what age group the book is geared towards and more about whether there is material in the book inappropriate for the age group. Peter and the Starcatchers is tame enough that a parent can let his middle school children read it, but interesting and deep enough that he'd enjoy reading it himself.
In many ways, I enjoyed Peter and the Starcatchers more than I ever enjoyed the story of Peter Pan. I read a lot of fantasy, and the one thing that every good fantasy world needs is a sensible magic system. When magic makes no sense, then every magical solution is deus ex machina, and you never know when a situation is truly dangerous, since it's never clear what poses a challenge to magic. Peter Pan lacked a sensible magic system, but Peter and the Starcatchers introduces one that does a lot to explain the magic both of Peter Pan and of Never, Never Land. You get a clear idea of what the abilities and limitations of it are, and when you encounter a situation you can guess whether it's truly dangerous or not. And this is another thing that this book does well, creating a sense of danger. Of course, we already know that Peter has to survive--it's his prequel, after all--but there are many other characters whom we come to like, and the danger to them is quite real. This book is a lot less carefree and, well, childish, than the original Peter Pan, and a great deal more serious. For me, that makes it more enjoyable, although others may disagree.
On the whole, I recommend Peter and the Starcatchers, but not for young children. There are parts which they will find scary, places where it's not clear who the good and bad guys are, and a level of violence that parents may find inappropriate. By the time I'd think a child is old enough to appreciate the story, he should have not just the reading skills, but also the patience, to be able to read it on his own. I also wouldn't hesitate to recommend it for adults who always wished the story of Peter Pan made a little more sense.
Now that I've reviewed Dave Barry's book, what do you think the odds are that I can get him to review my writing?
Plural, in this case. Peter and the Starcatchers is co-authored by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. I'll admit right away that I don't know too much about Ridley Pearson. I know that he's a mystery writer, but I haven't read any of his books. Dave Barry is another story. I've read quite a bit of what he's written, and enjoyed it all. Barry is a humor columnist, and if you're not familiar with him, you need to start reading his columns. Dave Barry is very funny, and if you read his works, both fiction and "non-fiction," you'll find that the humor is non-stop. I sometimes find I can't breathe for laughing. It was his name on the cover that convinced me to buy this book.
Peter and the Starcatchers is funny, but it is not as funny as most books by Dave Barry. While you'll occasionally chuckle and even laugh out loud, you won't find yourself laughing helplessly while trying to catch your breath. You may consider this a weakness of the book, especially if you bought it looking for Dave Barry-style humor. However, the reduced humor is purposeful, because this book is more serious than most of Dave Barry's books. That may seem odd, considering that it is putatively a children's book, but I don't really consider it a children's book. It is a common mistake to assume that any book about children must be for children, and thus Peter and the Starcatchers is classified as a children's book, in the same way as Harry Potter is. I wouldn't recommend any of these books for young children, since while they stay away from sexual themes, there do contain elements of violence and horror. According to the cover, Peter and the Starcatchers is for children ages ten and up. At that age, I was reading classics of American Literature in school, The Lord of the Rings for my own enjoyment, and other books that no one considers children's, or young adults', books. At that age I think it's helpful to think less about what age group the book is geared towards and more about whether there is material in the book inappropriate for the age group. Peter and the Starcatchers is tame enough that a parent can let his middle school children read it, but interesting and deep enough that he'd enjoy reading it himself.
In many ways, I enjoyed Peter and the Starcatchers more than I ever enjoyed the story of Peter Pan. I read a lot of fantasy, and the one thing that every good fantasy world needs is a sensible magic system. When magic makes no sense, then every magical solution is deus ex machina, and you never know when a situation is truly dangerous, since it's never clear what poses a challenge to magic. Peter Pan lacked a sensible magic system, but Peter and the Starcatchers introduces one that does a lot to explain the magic both of Peter Pan and of Never, Never Land. You get a clear idea of what the abilities and limitations of it are, and when you encounter a situation you can guess whether it's truly dangerous or not. And this is another thing that this book does well, creating a sense of danger. Of course, we already know that Peter has to survive--it's his prequel, after all--but there are many other characters whom we come to like, and the danger to them is quite real. This book is a lot less carefree and, well, childish, than the original Peter Pan, and a great deal more serious. For me, that makes it more enjoyable, although others may disagree.
On the whole, I recommend Peter and the Starcatchers, but not for young children. There are parts which they will find scary, places where it's not clear who the good and bad guys are, and a level of violence that parents may find inappropriate. By the time I'd think a child is old enough to appreciate the story, he should have not just the reading skills, but also the patience, to be able to read it on his own. I also wouldn't hesitate to recommend it for adults who always wished the story of Peter Pan made a little more sense.
Now that I've reviewed Dave Barry's book, what do you think the odds are that I can get him to review my writing?
