The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
I was just walking through the bookstore looking for something to read when I saw this book. I knew I had read a ton of reviews for it, so I decided to pick it up. When I got home, I found it was on my TBR list twice! Good thing I bought it.
David, who is twelve, loses his mother to an unnamed disease and shortly afterward his father remarries and has a new baby. This leads to David and his father moving to a new house in the country. David loves to read and Rose (his new step-mother) gives him a room covered in bookshelves that are full of books that once belonged to her uncle. David, who is having a hard time adjusting to all the new changes in his life, spends a lot of time in his room, reading his books. Eventually, David finds himself in a new world, where his favourite stories have become a reality, but with odd twists to the traditional tales.
David must find a way back into his own world, but in order to do this he must face his fears and do some growing up. As David travels through this other world, searching for the way home, he finds he has a role to play in many of these twisted fairy tales.
I really enjoyed this book, but I found I was left wanting more. I wished the Connolly had taken the story a little farther. I’m not really sure in what way so I’m afraid I can’t explain it better than that (sorry!). I really liked David as a character though. He was an extremely believable 12 year old. He was smart, but not too smart. He was brave, but not too brave. And he was noble, but not too noble. Sometimes, I read books and I find the perfectness of the characters just a little too unbelievable.
I also enjoyed some of the other characters in the novel. There were scary parts and funny parts and touching parts. And I really liked Connolly’s writing style. It really fit with the fairy tale theme of the book. It was an easy, lilting prose, just as we usually read in fairy tales.
I would give this book an 8/10.
Other reviews:
- Bloggin’ ‘Bout Books
- Random Wonder
- Stephanie’s Written Word
- Stuff as Dreams as Made on
- Things Mean A Lot
Did I miss yours? Leave a link in the comments.
August 5th, 2009 at 9:18 pm
I don’t know if I’ve heard or read anything of this book before. It does sound kind of interesting. I will have to keep my eye out for it.