Peter Pan (In Kensington Gardens ) (Wordsworth Collection) [Paperback]

J. M. Barrie (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 5, 1998 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up

The magical Peter Pan comes to the night nursery of the Darling children, Wendy, John and Michael. He teaches them to fly, then takes them through the sky to Never-Never Land, where they find Red Indians, wolves, Mermaids and... Pirates. The leader of the pirates is the sinister Captain Hook. His hand was bitten off by a crocodile, who, as Captain Hook explains 'liked me arm so much that he has followed me ever since, licking his lips for the rest of me'. After lots of adventures, the story reaches its exciting climax as Peter, Wendy and the children do battle with Captain Hook and his band. Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens is the magical tale that first introduces Peter Pan, the little boy who never grows any older. He escapes his human form and flies to Kensington Gardens, where all his happy memories are, and meets the fairies, the thrushes, and Old caw the crow. The fairies think he is too human to be allowed to stay in after Lock-out time, so he flies off to an island which divides the Gardens from the more grown-up Hyde Park... Peter s adventures, and how he eventually meets Mamie and the goat, are delightfully illustrated by Arthur Rackham.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-5-- A portion of the royalties from this book are being donated to a British charity, but that's not a strong enough reason to buy it. Four movable pictures (the sort that rotate to dissolve from one scene to another), plus a scattering of tiny, hard-to-find flaps, accompany an incoherently abridged text. The slightly antique-looking art is crudely executed; small figures with distorted or indistinct features change relative sizes from spread to spread, and are placed, in most scenes, with no discernible logic. Stick with the original, available in several handsome editions, or if you must have an abridgment, go for the book/cassette package illustrated by Diane Goode, read by Lynn Redgrave, and adapted by Josette Frank (Random, 1987).
- John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Barrie wrote his fantasy of childhood, added another figure to our enduring literature, and thereby undoubtedly made one of the boldest bids for immortality of any writer. . . . It is a masterpiece. --J. B. Priestly --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Wordsworth Editions Ltd (January 5, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1853261203
• ISBN-13: 978-1853261206
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 4.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,755,855 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If You Believe In Fairies..., February 27, 2003

By 

Edward M. Erdelac (Valley Village, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Peter Pan: Centennial Edition (Signet Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)

Wow! What a great story this is! I picked it up on a whim years ago having enjoyed the Disney cartoon, and when I finally got around to reading it, I couldn't put the darn thing down. This is really exciting stuff! Peter is ten times as irrascible as he is in the toon. One line has always stuck in my head - its where Peter is faced with certain death (I forget exactly what). He thinks to himself that its quite possible he could die, and thinks `That would be the greatest adventure of all!' That line sums of the feel of this book. Imagine being a kid who can never grow up who has the power to fly through a world woven of dreams and fairytales....I learned later that this was probably the sincere wish of the author, James Barrie, who was afflicted with a disease which made it impossible for him to grow. Though an adult in mind, he was the stature and semblance of a child. The warmth of this story has a deep heartfelt resonance in the heart of any boy who has grown up having adventures in his mind. It can't really be described -it has to be read and appreciated. If you love fantasies in the vein of The Never Ending Story and The Wizard of Oz, you will love this book.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bittersweet, September 4, 2000

By 

Nikki Thean - See all my reviews

This review is from: Peter Pan (Book and Charm) (Paperback)

The book 'Peter Pan' by J. M. Barrie is a truly beautiful work. It is never too cloyingly sweet or too harsh, and the child's perspective of the world is beautifully crafted. It does, however, bring you along on a journey to the Neverlands, and perhaps for a little while we can be reunited with our dreams.

Although Wendy seems a little prim, she is sweet and motherly. John was offhand and brave, Michael was tiny and believing. My favourite character was, however, Peter. The author really outdid himself on this one. Peter's innocent cockiness and love for dangerous adventures endeared him to me at once. He still has all his first teeth, and his first laugh - what more could we ask of him? His frightful happiness in danger reminds me of my seven-year-old self.

The book retains a magical quality right up to the last page. The midnight scene where Peter coaxes them out of the window has always stood out in my mind; there is a kind of magic in an ever-young boy, small and innocently cocky and always up to some mischief. The ending of the book is very sad, for only those who are gay and young and light-hearted can fly.

Definitely a book worth reading. Adults, trust me on this one: you might think you're too old to read this book, but once you do you'll find that a piece of Neverland still resides in your heart.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic book., February 4, 1999

By 

W. Berry "wlberry" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Peter Pan (Acc Childrens Classics) (Hardcover)

Reading Peter Pan with Beckers illustrations gives me a renewed appreciation of reading childrens stories. The book itself is a collectors piece. The story is wonderful of course, a true classic, and this book is a perfect vehicle for the story. The pages are silky, the illustrations are magical. It isn't a what you would call a "picture book" but has the right amount of illustrations in it without detracting one from reading. A book to be cherished and kept as a collectors piece.