Reviews with content warning for Death - Peter Pan

I've seen the Disney movie, I've seen two different productions of the musical, I've watched Peter Pan Goes Wrong, and I've watched/read other movies and books that retold the story, yet until now, I'd never actually read the source material. I have to admit, I've liked many of the other versions/adaptions better.

I feel as though a book like this needs no recap, so I'll go right into it.

I never expected the pacing to be so fast even though it's a children's book. Maybe being familiar with the plot is part of the reason, but I felt like whenever I blinked I was on a new scene. A lot of the material hasn't aged well, either, which being a classic comes to little surprise yet never fails to catch me off guard. Still, I adore the premise and always have, so I'm glad to have finally read the original novel.

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paigehf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.0

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mdwsn27's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

Loveable characters? No

2.0

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tigertheory's review

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adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

And thus it will go on, so long as children are gay and innocent and heartless.

To read this merely as a children’s book does not do it justice. Even though born in 2000, I grew up watching the 1953 version on VHS over and over again and the discrepancy between the two versions feels like a perfect illustration for the point the story is making about growing up. Reading it back makes me want to both be young again as well as to apologize to my mother.

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mcmeiss's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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cosmopsis's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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chalkletters's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I have no very strong memories of my reaction to Disney’s Peter Pan; I must have watched it, and I liked fairies so I was probably a Tinkerbell fan, but beyond that I honestly couldn't tell you. I was, however, completely enchanted by the 2003 adaptation, starring Jeremy Sumpter, which came out when I was 16, and is startlingly accurate to the book. If I'd have been able to get my hands on the text of J M Barrie's original play, I would've written one of my university on essays on the adaptation of 'clap if you believe' into the 'I do believe in fairies' scene.

Many of the lovable things about Peter Pan and Wendy are so well known as to be hardly worth mentioning: mermaids, pirates, daring sword fights and fairies whose dust grants the ability to fly. J M Barrie wraps up so many trappings of childhood play into a single novel that surely any reader will find something to take them back to their own nursery days.

Equally reminiscent of childhood is the importance placed on stories and story-telling. The whole book is written in the voice of a narrator who, like the narrator in The Magician's Nephew and the grandfather in The Princess Bride, interrupts and explains and talks about the way the story is crafted as he is telling it. In the title, Peter Pan and Wendy are given near-equal importance, and Wendy only gets taken to Neverland so she can finish telling the story of Cinderella. While there's not a book in sight, this focus on stories is rewarding to any avid reader of fiction.

Of course, coming at Peter Pan and Wendy from 2023, there's one massive sour note to contrast against all this loveliness. The depiction of the 'redskins' is awful, and very uncomfortable to read. As racist as some of the adaptations still are, at least they manage to make Tiger Lily into an actual character. In the original text, she's just an object for Peter to rescue and another woman to want him to be a man. So little agency does she have in Peter Pan and Wendythat she barely even speaks English.

As charming as the good parts of Peter Pan and Wendy are, I think the magic for me is in the adaptations, the way this story keeps being told and updated through the generations. It's nice to return to the original text once in a while, but it's by no means perfect.

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