The Phantom Tollbooth Paperback – October 12, 1988

I don't care what it says on the cover, if this is ONLY a book for children, I'm a circus acrobat. And since I'm a 66 yr. old crippled lady and NOT a circus acrobat, this must not be a book just for children. What is it? It's a wonderful collection of delightful play with words and numbers, puns and logic, profound insights and pure fun.
Milo is a boy who is ALWAYS bored. Then, one day he comes home from school to find The Phantom Tollbooth, with directions for assembly, a book of rules, maps, and two coins for the toll. Luckily, Milo also has a driveable toy electric car, so, after the tollbooth is together, he gets in his little car, drops in one of the coins, and off he goes, looking for something that he hopes might not be boring.
And so he goes, having fun times, meeting creatures we all know...a dog with a clock for a body (a watch dog, of course), a large bug that brags without reason and claims always to know the answers (a humbug). He goes to a banquet, but has to eat his words, and wishes he had given a shorter and yummier speech. If I started telling you all the delightful word play I would have to eventually copy the entire book. The author does a magnificent job and his love of words is obvious. No phrase is too small to take literally or juggle into new meanings.
Yet, even in the happy lands of Dictionopolis and Digitopolis....a city that uses numbers like Dictionopolis uses words...there is a problem. Throughout the entire Empire of Wisdom, there is no Rhyme or Reason, who were exiled. Milo, Tock, the watchdog, and the Humbug, start off to bring Rhyme and Reason back to the Empire of Wisdom. They have, of course, many adventures, but the mission doesn't actually become dangerous until they reach the Mountains of Ignorance, where they are beset by terrible demons: the Everpresent Wordsnatcher, who constantly interrupts, the Terrible Trivium, who wastes time doing unimportant, repetitive tasks, the Senses Taker, who wastes time filling out forms with useless information until the person is too bored to go do something more important, the long-nosed, green-eyed, curly-haired, wide-mouthed, thick-necked, broad-shouldered, round-bodied, short-armed, bowlegged, big-footed monster, who is, of course, none of these things, and is, in real life, the Demon of Insincerity. There are too many demons and monsters to mention here, but everyone is a demon you will recognize from your own life, slowing you down, wasting your time, and trying to confuse you.
After a couple of close calls, the three make it to The Castle In The Air and rescue the sisters, bringing Rhyme and Reason back to the Empire of Wisdom. There is much celebration, but Milo, worried that he has been away for so long, gets back in his little car and returns home, where only an hour has passed and the only thing that has changed is Milo, himself, who is no longer bored.
It's a marvelous book, quite suitable for children...none of the "demons" are scary to the youngest child, but I honestly don't believe a child can really appreciate the book's play with words, phrases and numbers. You would have to stop and explain a lot. I'd wait until my kid had a good grounding in the English language before I'd give her this book and, if she didn't like it, I'd try again a few years later. But don't forget to read it yourself. This is one of my favorite books of all time, and five stars just aren't enough to rate it with.

My first love. And to be honest, if you asked what my favorite book is, as long as I didn't pause to censor myself and choose another more "age appropriate" selection, this would still be my answer.
If you want philosophy suitable for a young mind, this is excellent. If you're not above reading a "children's book" if you're not a child, it's still great philosophy, mythology, word play, and creative genesis. Sure, as a society we first need to learn rules, what things mean. But once the rules are learned then you need to learn when they should be broken. Not everything has to make rigid sense. Once a surface meaning is discovered you don't quit searching, you can keep digging for the underlying meaning and learn more about the world and more about yourself. This is like beginner semiotics, early lessons in meaning-making. Sometimes watches tick. Sometimes they tock. Also it's fun!

At 10 years old, this was the first book that ever truly seemed to speak my language. Two decades later, I still feel a measure of understanding, and being understood, when I read "The Phantom Tollbooth".

I remember adoring this book when I first encountered ir, but I hadn't read it in forever. I am delighted that the Suck Fairy (who visits beloved childhood books and turns them into utter tripe that can't have been the same book it was before!) has been nowhere near this book; it is just as delightful and whimsical and wonderful as it has always been. And it ages well -- nothing about it feels dated or irrelevant.

Especially if you are an incorrigible punster (do not incorrige), read this book. It is well worth it.

My philosophy professor made us read this book because it does an excellent job of discussing the Two Cultures debate. I was really impressed by how Norton Juster took a complex topic and made it a fun and clever children's book. I was really blown away by all the symbolism. This book was just chalk full of meaning and references. I loved it.

A favorite book of mine ever. I read it a month ago while driving to Montana from Oklahoma and it went much quicker than I thought it would! I would have brought two books had I known. I suppose it was just that fun to read that I flew through it! I will be re-reading it! I intend to teach it for Classical Conversations at some point so I am reading it and the other reading for Challenge B ahead of time. Even without my ambition I think it is a wonderful book full of linguistic fun!

Great book that highlights the importance of many life lessons and skills, such as forethought, motivation, decision-making, solid reasoning, and word choice. Presented in a way that is humorous to children, but does not "preach". It is full of puns, which is better for 3rd grade level and higher. Lots of great vocabulary.

The Phantom Tollbooth is the book I wish my parents had read to me when I was a child.

This book explores English and mathematics, and connects them together in a world of their own. A world filled with puns and wordplay.

Milo is filled with ennui, and can find nothing that interests or excites him. The arrival of a cardboard tollbooth and little electric car send him into a world of adventure and exploration where his expectations are overturned.

His traveling companion is Tock, a dog with a clock in it's middle. He turns out to be both lovable, and offers often dry comments on the situation at hand. I never warmed up to the Humbug, who seemed to me to be part snake oil salesman. Yet he has his lovable moments.

If you have not read this book to your child, or have not given it to him or her to read on their own, then I think they are sadly deprived children.