The Phantom Tollbooth- read and enjoy! (The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster)

Member Name: JEHodgson

Product:	The Phantom Tollbooth - Norton Juster
Date:	24/07/00 (97 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Entertaining, stimulating,educational

Disadvantages: Wordplay can be challenging for some-but works without it too.

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster is one of my favourite books from my childhood. It tells the story of a boy called Milo who is bored- until one day a package arrives. He opens it to find that it contains a tollbooth to strange places...

He sets off in his little car to a world populated by characters who seem to originate from many plays on words (or is it the other way round?) and two warring factions, the numbers and the letters. There is a lot of humour in the puns and plays on words throughout the book (such as a watchdog that ticks,and my favourite- the car that won't work unless you are quiet- because it goes without saying!), but don't think that is all there is to the story. It takes a boy who has little interest in anything and literally brings the world of letters and numbers to life for him.



I have read this book many times, and, as a teacher, I have also used it with my children. It relies a lot on the wordplay, and so when reading aloud, many children missed the more subtle points- but then, as with most literature that works on many levels, it still entertains. They generally enjoyed it as much as I did, and it provides a stimulus for all sorts of ideas about language.

As an adult, I enjoyed the chance to re-read it. A book I would recommend to anyone with a lively mind and many who need their mind waking up a little!



As a postscript, I seem to vaguely recall a film of the book-but it wasn't a patch on the book...so if you saw it and were put off, try the book!

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