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relf's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Very like a dream . . . a series of odd, fantastical, and only loosely connected episodes in which a little boy, Davy, sometimes accompanied by a goblin, finds himself in many different places, some tied to storybook characters--Jack of Jack and the Beanstalk, or Sinbad the Sailor--encountering characters and events based on puns or the taking of proverbial sayings literally--"a watched pot" becomes a cooking pot full of watches. It's meant to emulate Alice in Wonderland, with silly verses scattered through the story, but I found it more like an actual dream than Alice, and somehow less scary--or is that just because I'm reading this as an adult? It was quite entertaining, and the disconnected episodes make it perfect for reading one chapter a night. I read my mother's copy--given to her on her 10th birthday in 1928--to check for rampant racism or other objectionable content (and really didn't find any; a bit of fat-phobia near the end) before giving it to a grandchild. He appreciates a pun, so he may actually enjoy it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Fatphobia
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