High in his attic bedroom, twelve-year-old David mourns the loss of his mother. He is angry and he is alone, with only the books on his shelf for company. But those books have begun to whisper to him in the darkness, and as he takes refuge in the myths and fairytales so beloved of his dead mother he finds that the real world and the fantasy world have begun to meld. The Crooked Man has come, with his mocking smile and his enigmatic words: ‘Welcome, you majesty. All hail the new king.’
And as war rages across Europe, David is violently propelled into a land that is both a construct of his imagination yet frighteningly real, a strange reflection of his own world composed of myths and stories, populated by wolves and worse-than-wolves, and ruled over by a faded king who keeps his secrets in a mysterious, legendary book…
When David’s mother dies he struggles to
accept that he failed to save her, despite the fact there was nothing
he could have done. In time his father marries again and has another
child, but David spirals further into loneliness and refuses to have
anything to do with his stepmother Rose, or his half-brother Georgie. He
locks himself away in a world of books… but suddenly, the books become
more real – they begin to whisper to David.
accept that he failed to save her, despite the fact there was nothing
he could have done. In time his father marries again and has another
child, but David spirals further into loneliness and refuses to have
anything to do with his stepmother Rose, or his half-brother Georgie. He
locks himself away in a world of books… but suddenly, the books become
more real – they begin to whisper to David.
One night David finds himself in a
sunken garden, away from the main garden of his house. Here he enters a
new world, where fairytales are real and more sinister than they appear
in his books. David must find a way to get back home, while conquering
his fears and the threats in the new world.
sunken garden, away from the main garden of his house. Here he enters a
new world, where fairytales are real and more sinister than they appear
in his books. David must find a way to get back home, while conquering
his fears and the threats in the new world.
I really liked the concept of this book,
the twist on fairytales and how they’re used to create a whole new
world in which everything isn’t happily ever after. Ultimately the book
is about growing up and facing loss, and the final chapter in particular
was one that really stuck out for me in terms of dealing with these
themes. David’s transition from childhood to adulthood and all that
brings with it is only briefly explored, yet it really resonates and was
actually my favourite part. For me this chapter saved the book, as for
the most part I struggled with it and found it to be just average – but
the last chapter really sums up loss in all its forms, and is a touching
ending.
the twist on fairytales and how they’re used to create a whole new
world in which everything isn’t happily ever after. Ultimately the book
is about growing up and facing loss, and the final chapter in particular
was one that really stuck out for me in terms of dealing with these
themes. David’s transition from childhood to adulthood and all that
brings with it is only briefly explored, yet it really resonates and was
actually my favourite part. For me this chapter saved the book, as for
the most part I struggled with it and found it to be just average – but
the last chapter really sums up loss in all its forms, and is a touching
ending.
The rest of the book felt somewhat weak
to me. I struggled to get into it, and although I could see what
Connolly was trying to do with David’s journey, his self discovery and
awareness of the world, there was something missing. It felt like it
just fell short of the mark. The Book of Lost Things could have
been an amazing novel, and had the whole book been as strong as the
final chapter it would have been great – I wasn’t bored by the story,
but it didn’t pack the punch that the final chapter did.
to me. I struggled to get into it, and although I could see what
Connolly was trying to do with David’s journey, his self discovery and
awareness of the world, there was something missing. It felt like it
just fell short of the mark. The Book of Lost Things could have
been an amazing novel, and had the whole book been as strong as the
final chapter it would have been great – I wasn’t bored by the story,
but it didn’t pack the punch that the final chapter did.
Rating: ★★★☆☆
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