I have to start by admitting that I’m a huge Peter Pan fan. I have a collection of J.M. Barrie’s works from 1913. I have a tattoo of the Nevertree. When I studied abroad in London, I dragged a group of people I’d just met all over Kensington Gardens, so I could find the Peter Pan statue on our first day there.
So with all of that, I’m a little ashamed that it took me so long to get around to ‘Peter and the Starcatchers.’ Thankfully, I recently saw the first three books in the 5-book series at a nearby junk shop and picked up the set for a great deal. Having read them, I’m even more regretful that it took me this long to get to them.
Firstly, the books are great chapter books for children. The pacing is fantastic. The chapters are short and fast-paced. The inclusion of strategic illustrations was a great and very faithful choice, and the mix of humor, adventure, and magic feels absolutely perfect for a Peter Pan story.
Secondly, make no mistake, this is a Peter Pan story. Specifically, this is a Peter Pan prequel. For the purists out there, I know that ‘The Little White Bird’ is already the Peter Pan prequel, but hear me out. These books were published with Disney backing, so I expected a more saccharine and sanitized backstory. In the original telling, there’s a lot of tragedy to the boy who wouldn’t grow up, and many modern retellings lose the magic when they make overly safe stories for young kids. But ‘Peter and the Starcatchers’ retains enough of the danger and darkness that at times I was even a little surprised that certain points had been included. The result is more enjoyable for an adult reader and would no doubt give a younger reader the sense that this story has real stakes.
Finally, the authors walk a fine line in imagining a new beginning to a story that has been retold for more than 100 years and yet still remaining faithful to the spirit of the original and the characters that we’ve come to love. We learn the origins of Captain Hook, the Jolly Roger, the Lost Boys, the Mermaids, and even the magic of Neverland itself. And of course, we learn how Peter Pan learned to fly.
For any reader who is young at heart, ‘Peter and the Starcatchers’ is a faithful beginning and continuation to one of our great children’s stories.”