Customer Reviews

Peter and the Secret of Rundoon (Starcatchers)

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson have reinvented Peter Pan, the Lost Boys, and Captain Hook so well that a generation from now no one might remember where J. M. Barrie's original creation ended and theirs began. So far, the two have written three incredibly fat and action-packed volumes of Peter's adventures with the "starstuff," the magical fallen stars that gave him his power and - in effect - rendered him immortal, though as a boy doomed never to grow up.

Along the way, Barry and Pearson have also brought a multitude of other parts of the legend to life and to center stage. At present, they've authored two short novels on other characters in Peter's worldscape.

Peter and the Secret of Rundoon finishes off the trilogy Barry and Pearson set out to write and fans of the series are already feeling the loss. The two authors succeed brilliantly in bringing their books to cinematic life within the pages. The pacing of all three books proceeds at breakneck speed.

As with the other books, PETER AND THE SECRET OF RUNDOON jumps in with both feet and with three different storylines that ultimately converge in the trilogy's final battle.

I love these books, and I love reading them to my son. There's just enough going on all the time - enough chases and enough mystery - that it keeps him fully engaged. And me too. They're even interesting enough for me to read by myself, then go back almost immediately and read them again to him.

Lord Ombra, Peter's ultimate enemy in this book, returns and begins his machinations to bring about the end of the Starcatchers, those people responsible for keeping the "starstuff" out of the hands of bad guys. Ombra quickly links up with Captain Nerezza and the chase is on.

In the meantime, Peter becomes aware of a murderous group - the Scorpion Tribe - coming to Mollusk Island - to wreak havoc on everyone there. Peter almost gets himself killed doing that and Tinker Bell has to save the day.

Back in England, Molly Aster and her friends begin tracking down clues that ultimately lead them to Peter's real identity and how he came to be at the home for wayward boys.

Talking about any of these plotlines too much will give away important twists and turns. Suffice to say there are plenty of surprises, and that Barry and Ridley really do justice to Barrie's creation and invented world. In a way, the authors really set up Barrie's initial novel by explaining many of the things Peter Pan fans have always wondered.

If you haven't read this trilogy, you can't wander through them. The books have to be read in order. Peter's powers grow, as does the villainy of his foes. And readers are gently nudged out of the world that existed then and slid right into Neverland. If you like juvenile fantasy novels, you'll be hard-pressed to find many better, more quick to read, or more inventive than these. The world is at once familiar and wondrous.

But the best time you'll ever have is sitting down with these and reading them to your kids. Unless you're a kid yourself. Then wait twenty years and read them then. These books are going to be timeless.

However, the movies can't be far behind, can they?

Peter and the Secret of Rundoon was a really great read. It ended the best trilogy I've ever read in my life, and in a way, it was disappointing to know that there were no more books coming. If you haven't read the previous two books, I suggest you go out right now and buy them. Before you start reading, make sure that you have at least five hours of free reading time. Once you begin reading, it is impossible to stop. Yes, these books are crazy addicting....

Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson just have this amazing gift to create suspense and the desire to read on. I hope that they will team up again to write a presequel to another classic!

Happy readings! :)

The Starcathcers' trilogy comes to an action-packed conclusion in this final installment from Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. In this installment, Peter must once again do battle against the evil Lord Ombra in order to save the world. Along with his friends Molly and George and the other Lost Boys they will do battle in order to stop Lord Ombra from completing his evil scheme. This is a terrific read. We've enjoyed all three books but this one was the best.

My 11-year-old daughter finished reading this book in about a week and says it's her favorite of the Peter and the Starcatchers series -- that's saying a LOT because the first two books are fabulous. That's right, I read them too - it's not just for kids. Dave Barry and Riddley Pearson are hilarious and have created vivid characters and stories that really move. A+++++

The first two volumes in this series caught me off guard with their freshness, originality, and that certain sense of whimsy that most of the great fairy stories tend to radiate. They are, and remain, far superior reads to the third and presumably final installment, "Peter and the Secret of Rundoon."

The strengths of the writing remain the adept characterizations, particularly where Peter's little tribe of Lost Boys are concerned this go-around, as well as the pacing; Barry and Pearson are more than competent at weaving multiple plot threads together, tapestry-like, which is all the more reason for my feeling a bit let down after finishing this one.

For starters, and without attempting to give away too much of the plot (a thing that I despise when reading reviews here and elsewhere!), the ending seemed almost an afterthought, with the real climax occuring several chapters before the final pages turned. While the previously mentioned Lost Boys thread was neatly tied up (although, again, perhaps a bit too quickly), how Neverland comes to be the place that we know it in Barrie's original tale (and the subsequent, excellent volume by Geraldine McCaughrean, 'Peter Pan in Scarlet,). Perhaps, given the situation regarding the immense quantity of starstuff present on the island, we are left to infer that, at some future point, the island, lagoon, and what not are finally catapulted into some time-space nexus, lodging just next to that second star to the right...but we are left with nary a clue as to whether or not this might be. Maybe such a question will be answered in a subsequent volume.

But the real bone to pick comes from the mouth (?) of Lord Ombra himself. Initially delighted at the return of this mysterious, horrifying creature, it's as if he's gotten the wind kicked out of his sails in this story. All of his familiar chills and horrors accompany him, but he someow seems less threatening, particularly when he's spouting off esoteric starstuff origin-stories.

***SPOILER WARNING!!!*********************************************

When Ombra states that mankind's very existence is due to the leaking starstuff in the universe, he attributes the existence of humanity to a blind and random accidental process not much better than Darwinian evolution. Such theorizing is not uncommon from the mouths of some of history's most despicable tyrants that have likewise used men (and women) to get whatever they want. But the fact that this is presented and then subsequently remains unchallenged lends truth to Ombra's statements. There is never any other explanation given, not by the Starcatchers, not by the mysterious beings of light that Ombra and his cadre are said to be locked in eternal struggle with...not anybody.

So, if these things are true, why do any of the acts of heroism matter? Why do our heroes bother at all? Even the spacey dualism that's presented as a representation of the age-old struggle between good and evil falls flat on its face here because of this, and lacks real gravity as the story progresses as a result.

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As I stated earlier, I feel more than a bit let down by this installment. It remains my hope that the authors, fine wordsmiths that they ordinarily are, are cooking up a much more satisfactory resolution to the ongoing story of the boy who never grew up.

Peter and the Secret of Rundoon (The Starcatchers) on CD is well performed by Jim Dale who also does the Harry Potter Series. It is so eye-opening to hear the unabridged spoken version of books. My applause is for the author Dave Barry as well as the reader Jim Dale.

Peter and Tinker Bell are perfectly happy on Mollusk Island. Peter and his little troop of orphaned boys live day to day in this paradise of fresh food and friendly natives. Fighting Prawn, leader of the Mollusk tribe, is indebted to Peter for saving his life, and though he doesn't care for "Englishmen," he and Peter have formed a strong bond. As content as they all are, that world will soon disappear as a carefully planned attack will turn their lives upside down. The fiercest of tribes, known as the "Scorpions," has begun an invasion of this peaceful little community. Determined to take over the island, absolutely no one will be safe from these ruthless warriors.

"In battle, the warriors sometimes hurled venomous snakes and spiders at the enemy; they also coated the tips of their arrows with a special mixture of toxins that caused horrific, paralyzing pain. It was this practice that gave the tribe its name, the most feared name in this part of the ocean: Scorpions. It was a name that meant misery and death."

Far away in London, Peter's old friend Molly Aster is planning a kind of invasion herself after discovering that her father, Lord Leonard Aster, will be going to Paris to investigate problems related to the "Starstuff fall." She is determined to go, though is definitely not invited on this journey. Molly and her friend George do serious research and discover some strange things about her father and a man known as Mr. Pan (is this Peter's father?). Finally, they manage to sneak aboard her father's ship, where they encounter and become prisoners of the evil Lord Ombra and Zarboff, King of Rundoon. The only thing worse than being in prison would be to fall victim to Zarboff's giant pet snake, Kundalini.

"He reached down and touched the dark shape next to his throne. The shape moved, and slowly a triangular head rose, the torchlight reflecting from two yellow eyes. Peter had seen snakes before; there were many on Mollusk Island. But he had never seen one half as massive as this."

For the boy who will never grow old, Peter's friendship with Molly is both sweet and poignant. They have shared so much together and will share more; still, they have the knowledge that they cannot grow up together.

"And then Molly kissed him on the lips. It was the first time either of them had ever kissed anybody on the lips, and it was a kiss they would both carry in their minds for the rest of their lives."

In this action-packed finale to the Starcatchers trilogy, authors Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson enrich the world of J.M. Barrie's original tale. Non-stop action and colorful characters keep the reader engrossed. A strong theme of family values and good friends runs throughout the series, and the delightful illustrations by Greg Call are perfectly suited in capturing this magical world. Like the previous two books, PETER AND THE SECRET OF RUNDOON stands well by itself --- but do read the others, as this is a totally outstanding set of Peter Pan adventures.

--- Reviewed by Sally M. Tibbetts

This is the third book in the "Peter and the Starcatcher" trilogy, imaginative stories that explain HOW Peter became the Peter Pan of fame. My family LOVEs this series! I have 2 children (ages 9 and 10), and we own all three books in this series, and all three audio books as well. I have read (and enjoyed) these books, and my kids have each read all of the books and also really enjoyed them (one child read the first of these books at 7 years old and thought it was wonderful). We listen to the audio books during meals sometimes, or during long car rides. Jim Dale is wonderful, his "voices" really make the book come alive! If you like humor (these books are really quite funny) and the Peter Pan story, then this series is a sure bet.

Peter and company are still living on Mollusk Island with the natives, mermaids, and Tinkerbell. But suddenly there is unrest in the form of a new enemy, the deadly Scorpion tribe which threatens to wipe out the Mollusk people. In tandem Lord Ombra is back from the dead to terrify the Starcathers including Lord Leonard Aster, father of Peter's good friend Molly. But when Molly takes matters in her own hands she discovers a secret in Peter's tumultuous past that can put him in the gravest of dangers.

What is the secret of Peter's powers? For years we thought it was the over exposure to starstuff, but what if there is more to it than that?

Peter is definitely getting older, in mind if not body. What with all that he has had to go through since the beginning of this adventure it is not surprising that he has changed so irrevocably. However, his body stays that of an adolescent, while he watches all of his childhood companions grow into young adults, including Miss Molly Aster, who Peter has developed feelings which he cannot yet understand. This is a much more serious and intense Peter Pan than the one we are accustomed to and I for one laud the change that Barry and Pearson have written into our young hero's character. It seems to me that from here he had no choice but to regress into the mind of the eternal youth, because if he had not he would have gone mad. Or perhaps he has gone mad and that was where Barrie's work picks up... I haven't quite figured out the implication, but I like the notion that Peter had to turn his wits into that of a boys to match the measure of his body. Peter actually comes off as quite tragic in this book, and becomes rather sympathetic in the telling of it all.

With the exception of one or two tangents in the middle of this book (the fight on the rocket ship? Please.) I thought this was a terrific ending in the series. I still think that Barrie himself would read this rendition of his work if he could. 4 and a half stars awarded to Barry and Pearson... the loss of the half star is simply for the dreadful battle on the rocket ship. Sorry guys, I wasn't down with it.

This is another excellent addition to the Peter and the Starcatchers series by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson. Once again the story is action packed and thrilling. I would encourage anyone who reads to their children to buy the entire series and make it a true family adventure to learn of just how Peter Pan became the flying boy of Neverland. I hope they will continue to produce more of these stories.