John Connolly
469 pages
Copy: Mine, birthday present from my sister's boyfriend
Read: 10/10/12
Spoilers: nothing that I could avoid
Crossposted: Librarything
I read this book for a bookclub a few months ago and was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it. It's right up my alley, but much more serious than most scifi/fantasy fairy tale rewrites. For example, one doesn't have to feel embarrassed reading it around a bunch of English majors, who aren't necessarily the most fantasy friendly people in the world. Connolly does a lovely job combining a literary mentality with a strong background in fairy tales and the art of adaptations. He even uses fairy tales I have never heard of, which was humbling and exciting. ("The Three Army-Surgeons" for anyone who's counting). Luckily for us, the copy I own (trade paperback, Washington Square Press, 2006) contains a detailed appendix, titled "Of Fairy Tales, Dark Towers, and Other Such Matters: Some Notes on The Book of Lost Things", which is a treasure trove of fairy tales, complete with Connolly's reason for working with each story, details of the themes as they relate to The Book of Lost Things and a complete extract of each fairy tale. It is possibly the best notes section I've read and definitely my favorite.
As for a plot summary, I'm loath to ruin any of the story. It is far too much of a journey to even begin to summarize. But, for the sake of provoking interest, I will mention that it is a bildungsroman centered around a young boy in Britain during WWII. After losing his mother, David begins to lose himself in books, leading to an adventure in a world that may or may not exist outside of his head. It is, of course, so much more complicated than that, encompassing themes as small as a child's slightest fears and as large as the embodiment of evil. It is a story about growing up and a story about how to live one's life as bravely as possible.
Honestly, I'd recommend this for anyone, at any age, who has ever been afraid of facing the meaning of life. But it is especially powerful for those who love fairy tales, who will rejoice in this powerful novel.
-Mercutia
