Peter and the Starcatchers (a 2005 read)

Back during the August book giveaway, I promised that I'd (eventually!) find my review of Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson (Disney Editions, which became Hyperion).

My review: It was okay. For the most part, technically well done. I told a friend that this could have been very much like the Muppet Show, especially with a side of Dave Barry: fun for kids, fun for adults. So, it could have been more "slapschtick-y." On the flip side, it could have been very vivid. Really, it ended up being neither. At the same time, I can respect that the story is not too complicated for its intended (I think) middle-grade audience.

The second half of the book picks up the pace, and here and there bits of the Barry sense of humor shine through; I detect his influence especially in the lighting-fast changes of which side is winning (and there are more than two). Toward the end, there are some moments--well, potential moments--when some of the basic decisions that produce the Peter who becomes Pan almost move you, but then...then, you realize everything you feel is inside your head, based on what you know of his future as the boy who never grows up. A nice book, and well-packaged, but not a classic. That said, this "prequel" is more accessible than the original, and leaves behind some of the more outdated aspects of Barrie's work.