Peter Pan (Aladdin Classics) [Paperback]

J. M. Barrie (Author), Susan Cooper (Foreword)

Book Description

Series: Aladdin Classics

The character of Peter Pan first came to life in the stories J. M. Barrie told to five brothers -- three of whom were named Peter, John, and Michael. Peter Pan is considered one of the greatest children's stories of all time and continues to charm readers one hundred years after its first appearance as a play in 1904.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

J.M. Barrie, the son of a weaver, was born near Dundee, Scotland, in 1860. He was a journalist and novelist and began writing for the stage in 1892. Peter Pan, first produced in London on December 27, 1904, was an immediate success. The story of Peter Pan first appeared in book form (titled Peter and Wendy, and later Peter Pan and Wendy) in 1911. Barrie died in 1937, bequeathing the copyright of Peter Pan to the Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, a hospital for children.

Susan Cooper, one of today's most distinguished children's book writers, won a Newbery Medal and a Newbery Honor for books in her fantasy sequence, The Dark is Rising. She is also the author of King of Shadows, a Boston Globe -- Horn Book Honor Book, and Green Boy, which was called "an intriguing and truly lovely book" by the New York Times Book Review. She lives in Fairfield, Connecticut, and her Web site is at www.thelostland.com.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin (November 11, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689866917
• ISBN-13: 978-0689866913
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #79,933 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( C ) > Cooper, Susan
  • #47 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > People & Places > Family Life > Orphans & Foster Homes

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Boy, why are crying?, June 19, 2004

By 

Amanda - See all my reviews

This review is from: Peter Pan (Aladdin Classics) (Paperback)

"Why can't you fly now mother?"
"Because I am grown up, dearest. When people grow up they forget the way."
"Why do they forget the way?"
"Because they are no longer gay and innocent and heartless. It is only the gay and innocent and heartless who can fly."
Wendy to her daughter Jane

If you think this is simply a children's book, and that as an adult you should just ignore it, well, then you're absolutely crazy. This is one of the few books that have ever made me cry. Yes, I actually cried when I read this book, because the story is just that good.

It is beautifully written by Barrie, with all the different characters that can be found in Neverland and throughout the great galaxy, even the stars are friends with Peter, well except when he tries to sneak up behind them and blow them out. There's mermaids and Indians and Pirates in Neverland, all the ingredients for a wonderful adventure for Peter and the lost boys.

If you've seen the Disney movie don't let that stop you from reading this. Disney's version is for kids. Barrie's version is for adults. I believe I've actually read somewhere that Barrie wrote this book for adults not children, and I do believe that adults will get so much more out of it then children will. Not that it won't be a good entertaining read for them, but an adult will be left with so much more afterwards.

The part of this book that really cinched the fact that it's perhaps one of the best books ever written is the final chapter, which is absolutely heart breaking and had me in tears. After the adventures the Darlings return home with all the Lost boys. All the boys grow up eventually forgetting the adventures they had, and become engineers and office workers never remembering what they had done already. Then there's Peter, who promises to come back for Wendy every spring, at first he remembers and comes back for her. We find out however that he has no recollection of his past adventures that the new ones have pushed them from his mind. He doesn't remember Hook, or Tinker Bell, he recons she must have just died since faeries don't live very long. Alas, Peter eventually forgets about Wendy, and she grows up and has a daughter of her own, Jane. Then one day he shows up and gives no notice to the fact that Wendy's all grown up, since he's to busy thinking of himself. Instead he takes Jane to do his spring cleaning, and afterwards every Spring he remembers he returns to take his mother for spring cleaning (As I sit here re-reading the final chapter for this review I'm crying again, how sad).

15 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars All gay and innocent and heartless, September 23, 2004

By 

E. R. Bird "Ramseelbird" (Manhattan, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Peter Pan (Aladdin Classics) (Paperback)

It doesn't surprise me particularly that the book "Peter Pan" (or, as it was originally titled, "Peter Pan and Wendy") is not read very often by children. Today kids have their Peter Pan animated movies, live action movies, television shows (of which the less said the better), musicals, stage plays, and what have you. There are a million different versions of the story out there, so it's no wonder the children feel that they don't need to read the original tale. I myself read it for the first time just now at the ancient age of 26, though I had been warned away from it many times. I knew about its more peculiar aspects (for example, that whole business involving Mrs. Darling's "kiss") so these didn't always shock or surprise me. They just weirded me out from time to time. What really did catch me unawares though was the wit in the book. This tale has its peculiarities, no question. But it also has amazing snatches of excellent writing. I just wish it had more of the latter and less of the former.

As every good schoolchild knows (or is liable to learn from Disney) Peter Pan is the boy who does not age. Living in Neverland, a kind of ageless fantasy-burg for kids, he is attended by the silly Tinkerbell, a fairy prone to continually shouting, "You silly ass". When Peter looses his shadow in the home of the Darling family, he meets Wendy for the first time. Wendy is entranced by Peter and with the promise of stories he agrees to take her and her brothers Michael and John with him to Neverland. While there, the kids encounter mermaids, pirates, Indians, and great swashbuckling adventures. They meet the Lost Boys and come face to face with the dreaded Captain Hook. But in the end everyone must grow up. Everyone, that is, but Peter Pan.

INTERESTING FACTS THEY NEVER TELL YOU ABOUT THE BOOK "PETER PAN":

1. Smee is declared to be the only Nonconformist in Hook's crew.
2. The fairies will occasionally stumble, "home from an orgy".
3. Tinker Bell is prone to wearing a negligee.
4. Hook attended private school and is said to bear a resemblance in his manner and dress to Charles II.
5. Peter Pan is an awful bore.

Readers of "Peter Pan" have to face up to several indisputable facts when perusing the tale. First of all, Peter's not that great a guy. I mean, it's a lot of fun to swoop around fighting bad guys and playing around all the time, but Peter's got a nasty streak about him. He's conceited and cruel (laughing when Wendy's brothers plunge out of the sky to their near deaths time and time again). He hates mothers as a rule and even goes so far as to try to trick Wendy into thinking her mother has forgotten her (though he repents at the last minute). He forgets anyone who loves him and is a combination of the worst aspects of all children. This isn't to say that his book doesn't make for interesting reading. I mean, it's not hard to work your way through "Peter Pan" and it has a lot of rewards. Barrie has an odd habit of sometimes getting wrapped up in his own peculiar thoughts for a moment before rushing back to the story in a hurry. The book is thoroughly English, containing such sentences as, "children at play are for ever beaching their coracles". Decipherable, but odd. If it weren't for statements like the ones about Mrs. Darling's kiss (creepy city) it would be an idea book. To my mind, it could stand a thorough editing job. As an author Barrie doesn't really seem sure as to who he's rooting for. One moment he's cruelly mocking Mrs. Darling and the next he's calling the children, "heartless" for leaving her in the first place.

No one familiar with the peculiarities of J.M. Barrie's personal life should be surprised by the book's moral. Mainly, that growing up is bad. This is the kind of moral kids like to hear and grown-ups, who idealize children in unhealthy ways, think is good. J.M. Barrie was perfectly aware of the cruelty of kids, but seemed to think it a good thing. When Wendy, her brothers, and the Lost Boys grow up it's written as a tragedy of epic proportions. For a healthier view of maturity, check out Madeline L'Engle's, "A Wind In the Door". Aside from its moral, however, "Peter Pan" is definitely a classic. It has influenced countless people around the globe for roughly a century. It has become a part of our culture and is vastly adored. I cannot love it wholly because I feel that it is a flawed novel. Nonetheless, I give credit where credit is due and say that it is one of the necessary books to read in the English language. If you have not familiarized yourself with it yet then you are denying yourself access to an important work. Lord, it isn't great, but it's well written and interesting. Few books can say as much.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Fun, December 7, 2008

By 

Steven R. McEvoy "MCWPP" (Canada) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Peter Pan (Aladdin Classics) (Paperback)

This was an interesting book, full of adventure but also has a more serious side about the need to grow up and grow in wisdom. It makes us realize the consequences of our actions and also the importance of family and friends.

The questions it left unanswered for me were:
-What school is it that Hook went to? What is known for its slouch and walk?
-The question of fairies that are unsure of their sex? Androgynous like angels?
-Forget fairies and you kill them the power of naming or unnaming

A great read for children of all ages, and if you like Peter Pan then check out Capt. Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youthby J.V. Hart for an introduction to Hook as a young man.

(First written as Journal Reading Notes in 1999.)