Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Review: Lost Boy

Lost Boy: The Story of the Man Who Created Peter Pan
By Jane Yolen, illustrated by Steve Adams
Published 2010 by Dutton Children's Books

Peter Pan is one of the quintessential childhood fantasies and I can see children being interested in learning the story behind it. Yolen is a very respected children's author, and I think she handles the biography well. It is difficult to say what level of controversy should be introduced in non-fiction children's books. Most adults know that Barrie's intentions with the LLewelyn-Davies boys have long been in question but should we really introduce this idea to children who only want to know where Peter Pan came from? I think Yolen made a wise choice in avoiding the controversy and does provide information for further reading on Barrie. The illustrations are the right mix of realistic and whimsical and I enjoyed reading this.

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