Peter Pan and Wendy - Illustrated by Mabel Lucie Attwell

By J. M. Barrie

J. M. Barrie's enduringly popular characters, Peter and Wendy, are immortalised by the delightful colour plates and black and white line drawings of Attwell's characteristically angelic children. Many of the earliest children's books, particularly those dating back to the 1850s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Pook Press are working to republish these classic works in affordable, high quality, colour editions, using the original text and artwork so these works can delight another generation of children. About the Author: James M. Barrie (1860-1937) was a Scottish playwright and author who is best known for his character Peter Pan. Peter Pan or, The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up was first performed in 1904 and published 24 years later; his only play intended explicitly for a young audience. Barrie's success as a playwright allowed him to indulge in a level of philanthropy and the royalties earned from the much adored Peter Pan have helped fund the Great Ormond Street Hospital since his death. About the Illustrator: Mabel Lucie Attwell (1879-1964) was a household name during the 1930s and 40s working mostly in watercolour and pen-and-ink. The public was enthusiastic about her delicate early work and her illustrations of chubby, endearing toddlers were enormously popular, lending her much commercial success.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Read Books Ltd.
• Release date: Apr 16, 2013
• ISBN: 9781447490159

J. M. Barrie

J. M. Barrie (1860-1937) was a Scottish novelist and playwright. Born in Kirriemuir, Barrie was raised in a strict Calvinist family. At the age of six, he lost his brother David to an ice-skating accident, a tragedy which left his family devastated and led to a strengthening in Barrie’s relationship with his mother. At school, he developed a passion for reading and acting, forming a drama club with his friends in Glasgow. After graduating from the University of Edinburgh, he found work as a journalist for the Nottingham Journal while writing the stories that would become his first novels. The Little White Bird (1902), a blend of fairytale fiction and social commentary, was his first novel to feature the beloved character Peter Pan, who would take the lead in his 1904 play Peter Pan; or the Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up, later adapted for a 1911 novel and immortalized in the 1953 Disney animated film. A friend of Robert Louis Stevenson, George Bernard Shaw, and H. G. Wells, Barrie is known for his relationship with the Llewelyn Davies family, whose young boys were the inspiration for his stories of Peter Pan’s adventures with Wendy, Tinker Bell, and the Lost Boys on the island of Neverland.

Book preview

ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR

PETER KEPT WATCH. (Page 79)

‘I DARESAY IT WILL HURT A LITTLE.’ (Page 29)

‘THEY ARE THE CHILDREN WHO FALL OUT OF THEIR PERAMBULATORS.’ (Page 33)

‘THEY DON’T WANT US TO LAND.’ (Page 48)

STARKEY SIGHTED NIBS DISAPPEARING. (Page 62)

THE HOUSE UNDER THE GROUND. (Page 86)

A MERMAID CAUGHT WENDY. (Page 101)

THE NEVER BIRD. (Page 107)

‘BUT THE WINDOW WAS BARRED.’ (Page 120)

THE STRANGE PROCESSION SET OFF. (Page 135)

WHEN HE HAD FREED WENDY. (Page 156)

WHEN WENDY GREW UP

ILLUSTRATIONS IN TEXT

TWO IS THE BEGINNING OF THE END

PETER SOMETIMES CAME AND PLAYED ON HIS PIPES

‘I WON’T GO TO BED’

MICHAEL TOOK HIS MEDICINE

THEY ARE NOT REALLY FRIENDLY TO PETER

HE TRIED TO STICK IT ON WITH SOAP—BUT THAT ALSO FAILED

‘I RAN AWAY TO KENSINGTON GARDENS AND LIVED A LONG LONG TIME AMONG THE FAIRIES’

‘NO MORE OF IT, NANA,’ SHE SAID STERNLY, PULLING HER OUT OF THE ROOM

MICHAEL SUDDENLY DROPPED LIKE A STONE

AND WHEN PIRATES AND LOST BOYS MEET THEY MERELY BITE THEIR THUMBS AT EACH OTHER

AS THE BOYS ADVANCED UPON THEM IN THIS TERRIBLE ATTITUDE

THE WOLVES DROPPED THEIR TAILS AND FLED

‘OUT OF THE WAY, TINK,’ HE SHOUTED

PETER, WHO UNDERSTOOD THEM BEST, OFTEN CUFFED THEM

SHE NEVER HAD A CIVIL WORD FROM ONE OF THEM

IN A FEW MINUTES SHE WAS BORNE OUT OF HIS SIGHT

THEY PRETENDED TO BE FRIGHTENED AT THEIR OWN SHADOWS

IN THE BITTERNESS OF HIS REMORSE HE SWORE THAT HE WOULD NEVER LEAVE THE KENNEL UNTIL HIS CHILDREN CAME BACK

THEY LIVE IN NESTS ON THE TOPS OF TREES

ALL children, except one, grow up. They soon know that they will grow up, and the way Wendy knew was this. One day when she was two years old she was playing in a garden, and she plucked another flower and ran with it to her mother. I suppose she must have looked rather delightful, for Mrs. Darling put her hand to her heart and cried, ‘Oh, why can’t you remain like this for ever!’ This was all that passed between them on the subject, but henceforth Wendy knew that she must grow up. You always know after you are two. Two is the beginning of the end.

Of course they lived at 14, and until Wendy came her mother was the chief one. She was a lovely lady, with a romantic mind and such a sweet mocking mouth. Her romantic mind was like the tiny boxes, one within the other, that come from the puzzling East, however many you discover there is always one more; and her sweet mocking mouth had one kiss on it that Wendy could never get, though there it was, perfectly conspicuous in the right-hand corner.

Two is the beginning of the end.

The way Mr. Darling won her was this: the many gentlemen who had been boys when she was a girl discovered simultaneously that they loved her, and they all ran to her house to propose to her except Mr. Darling, who took a cab and nipped in first, and so he got her. He got all of her, except the innermost box and the kiss. He never knew about the box, and in time he gave up trying for the kiss. Wendy thought Napoleon could have got it, but I can picture him trying, and then going off in a passion, slamming the door.

Mr. Darling used to boast to Wendy that her mother not only loved him but respected him. He was one of those deep ones who know about stocks and shares. Of course no one really knows, but he quite seemed to know, and he often said stocks were up and shares were down in a way that would have made any woman respect him.

Mrs. Darling was married in white, and at first she kept the books perfectly, almost gleefully, as if it were a game, not so much as a brussels sprout was missing; but by and by whole cauliflowers dropped out, and instead of them there were pictures of babies without faces. She drew them when she should have been totting up. They were Mrs. Darling’s guesses.

Wendy came first, then John, then Michael.

For a week or two after Wendy came it was doubtful whether they would be able to keep her, as she was another mouth to feed. Mr. Darling was frightfully proud of her, but he was very honourable, and he sat on the edge of Mrs. Darling’s bed, holding her hand and calculating expenses, while she looked at him imploringly. She wanted to risk it, come what might, but that was not his way; his way was with a pencil and a piece of paper, and if she confused him with suggestions he had to begin at the beginning again.

‘Now don’t interrupt,’ he would beg of her. ‘I have one pound seventeen here, and two and six at the office; I can cut off my coffee at the office, say ten shillings, making two nine and six, with your eighteen and three makes three nine seven, with five naught naught in my cheque-book makes eight nine seven,—who is that moving?—eight nine seven, dot and carry seven—don’t speak, my own—and the pound you lent to that man who came to the door—quiet, child—dot and carry child—there, you’ve done it!—did I say nine nine seven? yes, I said nine nine seven; the question is, can we try it for a year on nine nine seven?’

‘Of course we can, George,’ she cried. But she was prejudiced in Wendy’s favour, and he was really the grander character of the two.

‘Remember mumps,’ he warned her almost threateningly and off he went again. ‘Mumps one pound, that is what I have put down, but I daresay it will be more like thirty shillings—don’t speak—measles one five, German measles half a guinea, makes two fifteen six—don’t waggle your finger—whooping-cough, say fifteen shillings’—and so on it went, and it added up differently each time; but at last Wendy just got through, with mumps reduced to twelve six, and the two kinds of measles treated as one.

There was the same excitement over John, and Michael had even a narrower squeak; but both were kept, and soon you might have seen the three of them going in a row to Miss Fulsom’s Kindergarten school, accompanied by their nurse.

Mrs. Darling loved to have everything just so, and Mr. Darling had a passion for being exactly like his neighbours; so, of course, they had a nurse. As they were poor, owing to the amount of milk the children drank, this nurse was a prim Newfoundland dog, called Nana, who had belonged to no one in particular until the Darlings engaged her. She had always thought children important, however, and the Darlings had become acquainted with her in Kensington Gardens, where she spent most of her spare time peeping into perambulators, and was much hated by careless nursemaids, whom she followed to their homes and complained of to their mistresses. She proved to be quite a treasure of a nurse. How thorough she was at bath-time; and up at any moment of the night if one of her charges made the slightest cry. Of course her kennel was in the nursery. She had a genius for knowing when a cough is a thing to have no patience with and when it needs stocking round your throat. She believed to her last day in old-fashioned remedies like rhubarb leaf, and made sounds of contempt over all this new-fangled talk about germs, and so on. It was a lesson in propriety to see her escorting the children to school, walking sedately by their side when they were well behaved, and butting them back into line if they strayed. On John’s footer days she never once forgot his sweater, and she usually carried an umbrella in her mouth in case of rain. There is a room in the basement of Miss Fulsom’s school where the nurses wait. They sat on forms, while Nana lay on the floor, but that was the only difference. They affected to ignore her as of an inferior social status to themselves, and she despised their light talk. She resented visits to the nursery from Mrs. Darling’s friends, but if they did come she first whipped off Michael’s pinafore and put him into the one with blue braiding, and smoothed out Wendy and made a dash at John’s hair.

No nursery could possibly have been conducted more correctly, and Mr. Darling knew it, yet he sometimes wondered uneasily whether the neighbours talked.

He had his position in the city to consider.

Nana also troubled him in another way. He had sometimes a feeling that she did not admire him. ‘I know she admires you tremendously, George,’ Mrs. Darling would assure him, and then she would sign to the children to be specially nice to father. Lovely dances followed, in which the only other servant, Liza, was sometimes allowed to join. Such a midget she looked in her long skirt and maid’s cap, though she had sworn, when engaged, that she would never see ten again. The gaiety of those romps! And gayest of all was Mrs. Darling, who would pirouette so wildly that all you could see of her was the kiss, and then if you had dashed at her you might have got it. There never was a simpler happier family until the coming of Peter Pan.

Mrs. Darling first heard of Peter when she was tidying up her children’s minds. It is the nightly custom of every good mother after her children are asleep to rummage in their minds and put things straight for next morning, repacking into their proper places the many articles that have wandered during the day. If you could keep awake (but of course you can’t) you would see your own mother doing this, and you would find it very interesting to watch her. It is quite like tidying up drawers. You would see her on her knees, I expect, lingering humorously over some of your contents, wondering where on earth you had picked this thing up, making discoveries sweet and not so sweet, pressing this to her cheek as if it were as nice as a kitten, and hurriedly stowing that out of sight. When you wake in the morning, the naughtinesses and evil passions with which you went to bed have been folded up small and placed at the bottom of your mind; and on the top, beautifully aired, are spread out your prettier thoughts, ready for you to put on.

I don’t know whether you have ever seen a map of a person’s mind. Doctors sometimes draw maps of other parts of you, and your own map can become intensely interesting, but catch them trying to draw a map of a child’s mind, which is not only confused, but keeps going round all the time. There are zigzag lines on it, just like your temperature on a card, and these are probably roads in the island; for the Neverland is always more or less an island, with astonishing splashes of colour here and there, and coral reefs and rakish-looking craft in the offing, and savages and lonely lairs, and gnomes who are mostly tailors, and caves through which a river runs, and princes with six elder brothers, and a hut fast going to decay, and one very small old lady with a hooked nose. It would be an easy map if that were all; but there is also first day at school, religion, fathers, the round pond, needlework, murders, hangings, verbs that take the dative, chocolate pudding day, getting into braces, say ninety-nine, threepence for pulling out your tooth yourself, and so on; and either these are part of the island or they are another map showing through, and it is all rather confusing, especially as nothing will stand still.

Of course the Neverlands vary a good deal. John’s, for instance, had a lagoon with flamingoes flying over it at which John was shooting, while Michael, who was very small, had a flamingo with lagoons flying over it. John lived in a boat turned upside down on the sands, Michael in a wigwam, Wendy in a house of leaves deftly sewn together. John had no friends, Michael had friends at night, Wendy had a pet wolf forsaken by its parents; but on the whole the Neverlands have a family resemblance, and if they stood still in a row you could say of them that they have each other’s nose, and so forth. On these magic shores children at play are for ever beaching their coracles. We too have been there; we can still hear the sound of the surf, though we shall land no more.

Of all delectable islands the Neverland is the snuggest and most compact; not large and sprawly, you know, with tedious distances between one adventure and another, but nicely crammed. When you play at it by day with the chairs and table-cloth, it is not in the least alarming, but in the two minutes before you go to sleep it becomes very nearly real. That is why there are night-lights.

Occasionally in her travels through her children’s minds Mrs. Darling found things she could not understand, and of these quite the most perplexing was the word Peter. She knew of no Peter, and yet he was here and there in John and Michael’s minds, while Wendy’s began to be scrawled all over with him. The name stood out in bolder letters than any of the other words, and as Mrs. Darling gazed she felt that it had an oddly cocky appearance.

‘Yes, he is rather cocky,’ Wendy admitted with regret. Her mother had been questioning her.

‘But who is he, my pet?’

‘He is Peter Pan, you know, mother.’

At first Mrs. Darling did not know, but after thinking back into her childhood she just remembered a Peter Pan who was said to live with the fairies. There were odd stories about him; as that when children died he went part of the way with them, so that they should not be frightened. She had believed in him at the time, but now

Reviews for Peter Pan and Wendy - Illustrated by Mabel Lucie Attwell

[danielstj · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

3.5

This was better than I expected. The ending brought it all full circle. A nice little touching piece with the theme of childhood intertwining with the yarn.

[schmerguls · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

23 (re-read) Peter Pan or The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up, by J. M. Barrie. This was on Starrett's 1955 list of "books which will live", and I forgot to check my list of books read and so read it. It seemed so familiar, but I did not think I had actually read it. But I did--tho probably not in play form, as this was. It is so saccharine, I really cannot say as an adult it is worth reading. (read Aug. 8, 1998)

[cbl_tn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Although the story was very familiar to me, I don’t recall ever reading the book before. I saw the Mary Martin version on TV as a child. It struck me this time around how odd the plot is, with everyone expecting Wendy to assume the role of mother to Peter and the Lost Boys. Things have changed in the century since this book was written. Infant and child mortality was a lot higher in the early 20th century than it is now. Women’s mortality from childbirth (or other causes) was also a lot higher then. Children who had lost their mothers, or who had friends or relations who had lost their mothers, might see themselves among the motherless children of Neverland. The story may not resonate with 21st century children in the same way, and that’s a good thing.

[vykic37 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Find this review and more at On The Shelf!I absolutely LOVE Tinkerbell, and I am ashamed to say I had never readPeter Panonly seen the Disney version, so I decided to change that and grabbed the audiobook from the library. I thought it was so good and I am glad I finally decided to read it. The language is much different from nowadays of course, but it was still really great. Well-written and very fun, Barrie created a marvelous story for kids and adults. The Neverland world is so creative and must have been such a pleasure for Barrie to write. A little bit of the humor slipped by me since it was written so long ago, but not much. I really enjoyed the reader as well, especially when he did the classic nasally Captain Hook voice we all know so well! The characters were really great as well. The lost boys were adorable and Peter was so stubborn. The only character I really didn’t care much for was the father because he was so incredibly whiny and at one point argued with the youngest child just like a little kid. I liked the way the story ended and I even saw a bunch of references from the movie Hook that I never knew were from the book. If you like classics, this is a must read book! Fun, well-written, wonderful classic, fast read, one for my library!

[sprainedbrain · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I knew the basic story of Peter Pan; still, I was a little surprised at just how dark the book is. I loved the writing style, and the adventure and excitement, but the ending and Peter in general made me sad.I tried to read this with my 6-year-old, but had a hard time keeping his interest. He loved the illustrations and interactive elements of this gorgeous edition.

[angelarenea-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I've always loved the story of Peter Pan and finally got around to reading the book. I think that it brought out the character of Peter more than I was used to and I really enjoyed that.

[bettesbooks · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was so fun to read, my introduction to Peter Pan was in 1955 when Mary Martin did the TV presentation. This follows what I remember of the TV performance as I remember it. It brought back so many nice memories.

[tess_schoolmarm · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

About 50 years ago I saw the Broadway show starring Sandy Duncan as Peter Pan. It was much better than the book! 176 pages 3 stars

[fuzzi_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Maybe I would have enjoyed this book more if I'd read it as a child, but as an adult I found it just annoyed me, tremendously, especially the character of Peter. I think this is one case in which the Disney adaption was better than the source. Seriously.

[matesewiggns · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie is the classical tale of Peter Pan that boy who could not grow up and his adventures in Neverland with Wendy, lost boys, Tinkerbell and Captain Hook. The book have beautiful illustration throughout and is written like a beginners chapter book The first chapters of Peter Pan begins with Peter Pan visiting Wendy, John and Michael Darling, later with Tinkerbell who help the children fly with the help of fairy dust to Neverland . In Neverland the children met the Lost Boys, the Natives and Captain Hook and set sail on a fun adventure. The theme of this book is childhood and imagination which is shown through the character Peter Pan.

[benuathanasia · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was pleased with how close this is to the stage play (a favorite of my childhood). After Peter Pan in Kensington Park, I expected this to suck. Color me pleasantly surprised.

[elliepotten · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I probably don't need to say much about this one, right? Classic vintage children's fare: a charismatic yet dangerous young main character, a small army of assorted children, lots of adventures, some dubious attitudes towards women and Native Americans, a dose of tongue-in-cheek humour and plenty of magic. I actually really enjoyed it!

[cecrow · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Peter Pan is a tough sell these days, given the complexity of its language next to today's novels targetting the same age group. I tried to read it when I was a kid and set it aside, feeling vaguely lost and deterred; the Disney rendition was considerably easier to absorb. Now I tried again, as a bedtime story for my 7-yr-old son. What the author's driving at still went over our heads at times, but my son held on through every chapter and anticipated the next, even though I'm fairly sure he only fully absorbed half of them. Wendy's thrilling to the idea of children to care for, the source of Tinkerbell's jealousy and other story developments and narrator asides remind me of today's animated features where adult-oriented jokes are inserted to keep the grown-ups entertained. If only there weren't so much overwriting.One aspect that especially hasn't aged well is the "redskins", with their peculiar mix of native American and African American stereotypes of the novel's period. But my son didn't know those connections and I think viewed them as a race of entirely fantastical invention. The story remains a fun adventure for children, with its introducing the ability to fly (who doesn't want to do that?), a dog for a nanny, and a means of transport into one's own imagination where there's a new adventure every day with just the right mix of derring-do and danger, threats of blood-spilling and silly humour. We loved the medicine-taking episode, the captured shadow, the ticking crocodile, and many other fun ingredients. Of course we clapped for Tinkerbell, and the ending is magic for both kids and adults. I'm glad I returned to it, and he'll have fond memories.

[sparklegirl_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very interestingly told; the narrative is something special. I had seen the movies, but never read the book, and the book is so good. A surprising amount of the book was represented in the 2003 Peter Pan film. One thing: I prefer the Peter Pan character I have seen in the movies. The Peter in the novel definitely has an unlikable side. Still, this makes him more realistic... Sorry, I'm a sucker for Jeremy Sumpter. :P

[savageknight_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The first thing to strike me about this book was actually how violent it was! Somehow, I expected the violence to be as "play" as I've always believed it to be. Alas, when the pirates and indians fight, it is to the death. And Peter himself is quite the callous bastard! It really takes the whole level of "what if the violent games children play were made real" scenarios to a point you'd never see Disney go! :)It truly is a fascinating read, however, regardless of things like the "narrator" sometimes interrupting the flow of the story, or the vengefulness of Tinker Belle. There are still plot points I can see Disney make use of in future movies so JM Barrie's ideas will still be feeding future generations.

[zohrab_5 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This copy is really beautifully done, the pictures are really beautiful. As far as the story, does it really need a review?

[millsslave · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Peter Pan is a childhood favorite. I used to watch the movie so many times my dad had to make about five copies so I wouldn't ruin the original tape. I love the idea of Neverland and the Lost Boys. I think a part of everyone never truly wishes to grow up and take on adult responsibilites and Peter Pan represents this desire. One difference between the Disney animation and the book is the part involving the thimble and the kiss. Peter Pan misnames the two and believes a kiss is a thimble and visa versa.I think Peter Pan is a childhood favorite and classic for all.

[ben_a_11 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I stopped reading after 50 pages -- a bit twee for me. Although I like that Tinker Bell (like all true fairies) is a rotter.

[mialro_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another strange story I list among my favorites and keep coming back to. I don't really think children can fully appreciate the story.

[twright3_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was shocking to find. Everybody knows the story of Peter Pan, but to read Barrie's work changes the way we approach it. The language is so fresh and invigorating and just pure fun.

[kristi25_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Everyone knows the story of Peter Pan. Like many, I had only seen the Disney version of the movie and never read the book. The bare bones of the story are the same. Peter Pan comes in through the open window of the Darling home one night and the three Darling children--Wendy, Michael, and John--fly off with him to Neverland. All of the characters are present--Tinker Bell, Captain Hook, Tiger Lily, the Lost Boys, Smee, and the crocodile.What surprised me the most was that the tone was much darker than the Disney movie. I purchased this book with the hope of having my 8 year old read it, but I think I'll wait until he's a little older. The reading level isn't difficult, but there is much more violence. Neverland is not a happy place, but a dangerous place where the Lost Boys are on constant alert so as to not be killed by the pirates, Indians, or wild animals.Peter is not as likable in the book. He is incredibly arrogant and selfish. That alone wouldn't bother me if it weren't for the fact that his cockiness put the lives of others in danger. Peter originally sought out Wendy so that the Lost Boys could have a mother. Peter was very self-centered and throughout the story you could tell that he didn't really care about Wendy. When she ultimately went home, he was just sad that he didn't have someone to clean up after him.Tinker Bell was another character I found to be quite different in the book. She was a nasty little thing with a sharp tongue.Barrie is an excellent story teller but Peter Pan wasn't as captivating as I'd hoped. I can see why it is a classic. I'm glad I read it, although I doubt that this is a book that I will revisit.

[isabelx_21 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'd never read this book before and I don't think I've ever seen the panto or the whole of any of the films either, but of course I vaguely knew the plot from seeing various parts of the cartoon version on those Disney Time TV programs that used to be shown every bank holiday. It is a darker story than I was expecting; the fairies and mermaids are otherworldly and treacherous and Peter's forgetfulness makes him an unreliable and at times unnerving companion. He isn't really human at all any more - he spent too long with the fairies and that is never a good thing. Because Peter Pan refuses to grow up, he will remain 'gay and innocent and heartless' forever.

[ceolach · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The JM Barrie original bears only a passing resemblance to the 1953 Disney movie. Yes, all the characters are there, but what happens in the novel is much darker and deeper than the Disney-fied version. It is truly an examination of the inner child that refuses to grow up. We see both the good and the evil that dwells within the heart of man.

[jjjackson-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Peter Pan As a boy I always wished to be Peter Pan. I never wanted to grow up to be an adult. I wanted to remain a child having not a care in the world. As time evolved I grew up and before I knew it I was not a child. Troubles of the world concerned me. As a child I had many memories of pretending to be Peter Pan. I use to watch all the Peter Pan movies and read all the children books. I've read Peter Pan many times. This is easily one of my favorite books and its truly for all ages. It not only has an outstanding story but brings back child hood memories and brings a special feeling to all of its readers. There are very few books that have caught my attention like this book. I would highly recommend this wonderful book to all and everyone.

[misslizzy_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this book somewhat late in life, simply because I thought it was a children's book. Not that I am against reading children's literature, but I really thought that I was too old for this book. Man, was I wrong! This book is actually very adult. Peter's life, how he will always be a child, and will always be alone, made me cry. And the illustrations in this particular edition were gorgeous.

[anodos99_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a lot of fun to read. Much better and very different than the Disney version or any of the other Hollywood attempts, predictably.

[hoosgracie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The story of the boy who never grows up. Having listened to Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson's wonderful prequels to Peter Pan (Peter and the Star Catchers and Peter and the Shadow Theives), I wanted to listen to the original - I never had. Well, I really didn't like it. The reader was good, but Peter is a little brat. I think Disney improved on Peter.

[seriousgrace · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Because Peter Pan is such a well loved, well (over?) produced story, everyone knows the basic plot: three kids unhappy with the way their father has treated the family dog run away with an orphan boy to his Neverland (not to be confused with Michael's Never Land Ranch). Peter and his Lost Boys are looking for a mother and they think they have such a figure in Wendy, one of the Darling children. It's a magical adventure full of danger in the form of pirates, "redskins" and a ticking crocodile. Even the fairies and mermaids are not to be trusted.Upon rereading Peter Pan I was surprised by how slow the story moved in certain sections. Because of the glossed-over, dumbed-down, glitzed-up theater/movie/storybook versions that have popped up over the years I had forgotten Barrie's original 1911 language and long since deleted details. It was hard to picture reading this aloud to a young child. Peter Pan seemed slightly evil (being described as cunning and sly), Tink seemed downright dirty as she responded to her own jealousy over Wendy (gleefully leading Wendy to her death). True to fairy tale form, it does have a happy ending. Sort of.

[slightlyfan · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

No wonder this book is a classic. It is a brilliant story about a boy who never grew up.It is a tiny bit hard to read and a little confusing at parts, but if you read it through you will be glad you did.

[suavisvinum · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

still one of my favorite light reads. great book for anyone :D