Reviews

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

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zarco_j's review against another edition

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funny informative lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

buttercupita's review against another edition

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2.0

I know it's a childhood classic, but I just cannot get into this book (and I do love word play -- I just cannot figure out what the point is here beyond that!) I ended up abandoning it 2/3 of the way through....

dyno8426's review against another edition

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4.0

Norton Juster has put all the ingredients of a perfect fable here - educative metaphors for learning, imagination for indulgence, and witty humor for entertainment. What results is probably the best children book I have read. For a fable to work well, the focus should be on being relatable to children, who is their primary audience. And analogies in fable are the best way to do that. They need reinvention to communicate worldly ideas and lessons to children in a manner which is effortlessly relatable to the world they interact with, while being novel enough to pique their interest and hook them on to the story. The tool for relatability in a fable is pivotally the metaphors used.

A fable needs to have a delicate film of fictional narrative layered on top of concepts which the readers should be familiar with. It should not take huge amounts of time and effort to form the subconscious connection with the underlying intent the author is trying to champion. It's like cooking nutritious food and presenting it in a manner which is fun and fresh to their eyes. It just makes it easier for consumption and the success of culinary/literary endeavor. Conversely, if it is too layered, the patience of readers may get lost and the message may get rendered ineffective or not worth enough. If it is too direct, it becomes identifiable as preachy and is not able to hold its disguise as an interesting thing worth paying attention to. This story is a brilliant display of how to properly employ metaphors in wrapping the worldly lessons and life experiences as a present that the children can open with wonderment and pleasure.

The other amazing aspect of fable that the readers will witness here is being novel and imaginative enough. It literally transports Milo from the real world to the world beyond the tollbooth. A world which feels totally absurd and haphazard like the world Milo departed from, but with a goal that inspires initiative and interest from Milo to endeavor with. It is a journey of finding that lost spark in the educational responsibilities meant for children. When Milo comes back, he is a changed child. The fantastical world that Milo has his adventures in is modeled cleverly with proverbs and puns from the real world. Norton Juster has created kingdoms and perils as derivation of all the challenges that a young child occasionally finds himself in. By involving a child's imagination in the fictional world, the author is able to extract that engagement in real world by using the literal familiarity of those magical kingdom's names with the real world knowledge. It's a clever ploy worth experiencing in all its humorous and witty glory.

And genius fables like these are not just for children. Adults reading them can learn from them as well. After all, fables are essentially ways of communicating effectively to readers/listeners with different priorities and maturities. They demand a shift of perspective and a imagination-forward approach. As a result of this fertile engagement, both parties end up growing and learning more about life.

logan08's review against another edition

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5.0

This was an amazing book and it made me think of things in ways I would have never thought of on my own. Tock was my favorite character because of the commitment to his job and his loving personality, as long as you didn't waste time.