Modern Fantasy - Stories of the Supernatural

 

The book Peter and the Starcatchers, by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, is Modern Fantasy (from list on pg. 71 of class text) and received a Booklist "Starred Review" it is also on the YALSA 2005 Audio Young Adult Book List.

 

The book Peter and the Starcatchers is great.  I thoroughly enjoyed the book from beginning to end.  The author Ridley Pearson decided to write the book after his daughter asked him one night after her bed time story, how the flying boy came to be.  This is something I had always wondered as well, and I am sure many "Peter Pan" fans have asked the same thing over the years.  Well there is no holding back in this book.  From the very beginning we see Peter's character taking shape.  He is an orphan at St. Norbert's Home for Wayward Boys and is being moved across the sea on a ship named the "Never Land"; to become a slave to the King of Rundoon. While on the "Never Land"  he befriends a girl named Molly, who we find out after some events that she is a Starcatcher.

Black Stasche the scariest pirate that rides the seven seas over takes the Queens ship and changes the name from the "Wasp" to the "Jolly Roger".  The pirate Black Stasche, as you may guess, becomes Captain Hook, Peters arc enemy.  Many of the characters that are introduced from the very beginning are characters we have known and loved for years.  We learn the background on the Lost Boys, Smee, The Savages, and of course where it is that all the magical power comes from that makes Peter the boy who can fly.

The pages are packed full of adventure and excitement from the get go.  There is mystery, intrigue and a battle of wits over who will find the magic first.  The book does seem intimidating at over 451 pages, but the chapters are short and very easy to read.   I was able to complete the book in two days, due to how it draws the reader in and the pages flow.

This book would be ideal for kids ages 10-14, but anyone ever wondering about Peter Pan before we met him in the 1953 animated Disney film would enjoy the book as well.  To "hook" the students I would read the cover insert to them during a book talk.  Also this would be a great book to use in a classroom with students.  It would really appeal to boys, but even girls would enjoy reading about the Starcatcher named Molly.  Some sites that have resources to assist with using this book for a lesson are - Peter and the Starcatchers Literary Study   and   Peter and the Starcatchers WordPress.