Wide Awake Wednesday: A Review of The Phantom Tollbooth

"'In this box are all the words I know,' he said. 

'Most of them you will never need, some you will use constantly, 

but with them you may ask all the questions which have never been answered 

and answer all the questions which have never been asked.'"

- Azaz the Unabridged, from Norton Juster's The Phantom Tollbooth

Not realizing I was in many ways jumping to the Island of Conclusions, I judged this book by its cover for many years. I never gave much thought to reading it. But now that I have I'm quite glad I did. 

You know a book is good when every page is something you want to quote but the quotes are too long. The whole book needs to be read. You can't find the best parts in a few lines and be satisfied, because the best part is the whole book itself. 

Critics on the opening pages described this book as being similar to Alice in Wonderland and the Wizard of OZ. The art and writing style also reminded me of Roald Dahl whom I loved growing up. I have memories of laying in bed with my sister Kerry and my Dad, trying to read one of his books out loud while learning to read. They were shocked when I properly said the word "Tabasco". 

The sort of style Dahl and Norton Juster use is one I want to explore as a writer. The style is adorable and thought provoking even for a young kid. But I love that it still speaks to you even if you aren't a young kid anymore.

My 11 year old brother is getting a copy of the book for his 12th birthday this summer. He better love it even though he isn't exactly a little kid or an adult that needs life lessons refreshed. To me that's one of the best things about this book: It has lessons for any age. It reminded me of the lessons I needed to hear in my current place of life. So even if you've read The Phantom Tollbooth before, I suggest you reread it. You may need those lessons refreshed. But this isn't to say the book was like a self-help book. That's not the case at all! 

My overall review would be a 4.5. Only losing points for a lack of women.

Trash Talk Tuesday: Review of The House of the Scorpion

"Very dark indeed is his majesty when he wants to be. 

When he was young he made a choice, 

like a tree does when it decides to grow one way or the other. 

He grew large and green until he shadowed over the whole forest, 

but most of his branches are twisted."

-Nancy Farmer, The House of the Scorpion

There are some children's books that I read and my brain screams "How is this for children!?" Some people argue that children aren't capable of grasping the concept they are reading. I don't agree with that. I believe that children understand the horrors and sadness they are reading/watching/hearing but they don't have the words yet to explain their grief. I thought about this a lot throughout the course of reading Nancy Farmer's The House of the Scorpion.

I wish I had read this book as a child. It is a shocking and intense introduction to science fiction. I wanted to cry so many times throughout reading it. 

My only "trash talk" about this book is that I wouldn't call it feminist. The women were mostly bad mothers because they cared about political issues or evil or cute little girls who want to save kittens. Only Celia was a feminist character but even that could be argued. 

This was a great coming of age novel that dealt with too much for one child. Which is why I wanted to cry so often. I suggest this book for people who love science fiction and children's stories. You should also read it if you want to read a story about a character of color. 

The House of the Scorpion is about science, corruption, power, and what it means to be human. Strangely, it is both a celebration of the will to live and the acceptance of death. My overall score would be a 3.5.