★★☆☆☆ The Phantom Tollbooth, by Norton Juster, Jules Feiffer (Illustrator)
Preachy and sleepy
The Phantom Tollbooth
Norton Juster, Jules Feiffer (Illustrator)
Preachy and sleepy
I know many people consider The Phantom Tollbooth to be both the Bee's Knees and the Cat's Pajamas, wrapped up in one convenient package. Sad to say, I am not one of them (as you have already figured out from the two-star rating -- you're so smart!). I think the problem for me is that I don't like the type of book this is. It may be the premiere exemplar in all of history of such books, and therefore deserving in many minds of being rated a ten on a one to five scale, but that is not me.
What do I mean by "the type of book it is"? I have two things in mind, one general and one rather specific. The general thing it is is a book that preaches to children. (Yes, I know you're going to object that it's not just for kids, but ALL books that preach to children are also books that preach to adults). If you must preach at me, please do a better job of hiding it, and wrap it up in a love story or an adventure or a time-travel story -- something entertaining.
The more specific thing it is is a book that personifies abstract concepts as characters, places, and objects. The oldest book of this form I know is The Pilgrim's Progress. I wouldn't be at all surprised to learn that Greek authors had written books/plays of this nature -- seems like something they'd do, but my classical scholarship is deficient. The most recent I encountered was The Christmas Pig. I just don't like them. The same idea is also at the heart of Pixar's Inside-Out, the only one of these artworks I found entertaining, where, perhaps, my love of the form (animated film) overtook my dislike of the content.