The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly

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The Book of Lost Things is an almost perfect book. I want to clutch it to my breast and not let the effects loosen their grip on me. One reviewer described it this way: “WHAT a story. WHAT a storyteller.” I’m almost at a loss of words to describe this masterful tale. So I am going to quote the information from the back of the book to get you started as you decide if this is the book for you:

High in his attic bedroom, twelve-year-old David mourns the death of his mother, with only the books on his shelf for company. But those books have begun to whisper to him in the darkness. Angry and alone, he takes refuge in his imagination and soon finds that reality and fantasy have begun to meld. While his family falls apart around him, David is violently propelled into a world that is a strange reflection of his own – populated by heroes and monsters and ruled by a faded king who keeps his secrets in a mysterious book, The Book of Lost Things. Taking readers on a vivid journey through the loss of innocence into adulthood and beyond the author, John Connolly, tells a dark and compelling tale that reminds us of the enduring power of stories in our lives.

Many of the challenges that David faces in the fantasy land are taken from Grimm’s Fairy Tales, but all are fractured or different than I remembered. Some made me laugh aloud while others made me hold my breath in fear or horror. I was also reminded on the Wizard of Oz in that David encounters helpers along the way to find the King who might hold the key to the mystery of how to get home. But fear not, this tale is not another retelling of an old and tired tale. It is marvelously unique. And-spoiler alert- it ends, as all fairy tales do, with a happy ending.

Sigh*… that is me reflecting on the book and the powerful, enthralling hold it has on me right now. Read it yourself and see if you agree with me.

11th grade through adult level; Audio Book format; 5 out of 5 stars.