A review by aotora
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring lighthearted relaxing sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I watched the movie a few times when I was younger - as I got older I decided to finally read the book the movie is based on - and it was one of the best fantasy books I've read so far. It's surprisingly dark and it does go on after the movie ends. Some characters are slightly changed- Bastian for example is a slightly heavier boy with a low self esteem - and because of that he gets influenced easily and makes some really bad decisions throughout the book. I also loved the story's focus on keeping imagination - even as an adult. Because a lot of times as an adult you grow up and you believe that having an imagination or making up stories is no longer cool or interesting, it's just something you shouldn't do. I also loved the many creatures we meet in this story- even though some names are super hard to pronounce and I don't believe that I would be able to say them as a kid - I listened to the audiobook I found on youtube during those parts and it really helped me with the names - but it would be good if the book included a sort of a glossary with all the names and how to pronounce them like a few books do these days.