Thursday, November 17, 2011

The Phantom Tollbooth, The Annotated Phantom Tollbooth, Norton Juster

This is the 50th anniversary of the classic children's story, The Phantom Tollbooth.  The author and illustrator are in their 80's, but they are still visiting bookstores and signing books.

Random House sent me copy of each of these books for review (thank you).  They were published in October, so you can find them in your local bookstore now.

I have to admit that this story has never been a real favorite of mine.  I think it was because I never found it as a child and I didn't appreciate it as much as an adult.  The story is silly, the characters are total fantasy, the words are confused and misaligned, and all those things are why a child finds this book fun to read!

The 50th anniversary edition would be a great way to introduce the young one in your life to this great adventure.  Mr. Jules Feiffer's illustrations are bold and demonstrate what weird creatures Milo runs across.

This story begins with Milo being bored, and that stops a few pages into the book.  Your child won't be bored either.

And, if you're already a fan of this book, you really need to get the Annotated Phantom Tollbook.  The author tells you why he wrote what he did and what gave him the idea for it.  He also tells you what the various passages are supposed to mean.  So you can read this story again and see it in a totally new way.

These books are well bound and collectible, so don't wait too long to grab a copy.

Happy reading.

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