REVIEW: Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook by Christina Henry
Publishing Information: Paperback; 292 pgs
Publisher: Berkley Books; 4 July 2017
ISBN: 9780399584022
Standalone
Copy: Out of Pocket
Reviewer: Tyson
Synopsis: "From the national bestselling author of Alice comes a familiar story with a dark hook—a tale about Peter Pan and the friend who became his nemesis, a nemesis who may not be the blackhearted villain Peter says he is…
There is one version of my story that everyone knows. And then there is the truth. This is how it happened. How I went from being Peter Pan’s first—and favorite—lost boy to his greatest enemy.
Peter brought me to his island because there were no rules and no grownups to make us mind. He brought boys from the Other Place to join in the fun, but Peter's idea of fun is sharper than a pirate’s sword. Because it’s never been all fun and games on the island. Our neighbors are pirates and monsters. Our toys are knife and stick and rock—the kinds of playthings that bite.
Peter promised we would all be young and happy forever."
Every once in a while there is a novel that takes a well-known character or story and flips it on its head, Lost Boy is one of those books. In this novel we learn that Captain Hook was once apart of Peter Pan's group of Lost Boy and eventually outgrew his forever young friend.
Henry does an impressive job of really capturing the world of Peter Pan and then takes it another step forward by subtly providing clues as to Peter's dark mindset. As the novel opens Peter and the Lost Boys are up to their classic hijinx harassing pirates and swimming when Peter decides to bring a much younger boy for the gang, this action upsets his oldest and best friend who would eventually grow up to be his mortal enemy, Captain Hook.
While the story isn't new, the viewpoint that the novel takes is. The way in which the author blends the well-known and then twists it into a much darker and grittier storyline is well done. While I had a fairly good idea of where we would end up the journey was so well done it was a book that was hard to put down and I am not even a fan of the Peter Pan mythos.
Lost Boy is a gritty take on the Peter Pan story that paints Captain Hook as the best friend of Peter until he started growing into a man and how horrible of a person Peter Pan truly is as he only cares for his Lost Boys as long as he is having fun, if the fun stops then he will find a way to feed you to the Many-Eyed Monsters that roam the valleys or the Crocodiles that hunt the beaches to make room for new playmates that will offer him entertainment for a brief period of time.
Lost Boy was an unexpected treat. The premise sounded entertaining and it didn't disappoint. Even if you don't care for Peter Pan this is a book worth picking up as Henry does an exceptional job of telling a well-known tale with a dark twist. Recommended.
Overall 8/10
Comments
Post a Comment