After the Rain: A New Adventure for Peter Pan. 2nd edition

by J.E. Somma, Kyle Reed (Illustrator)

Did you ever wish that you could stop time? To simply take one special part of your life and make it last forever? Warm, adventurous, and engaging, J. E. Somma’s After the Rain breathes new magic into James Barrie’s loveable character, Peter Pan. Set in the twenty-first century, after one hundred years as the boy who wouldn’t grow up, Peter feels outgrown and forgotten by modern-day children. To get even, in an angry rage he wishes for all of the world’s magic to be cast into a heavily guarded Kingdom. After which, with the help of three new friends who come to his rescue (Crystal, Buddy, and Sean) Peter must face the unforeseen consequences of his wish.

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Justine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm starting on a positive note: This book contains some great ideas. Peter Pan, lonely after one hundred years in Neverland, and alone because no one on earth believes in his stories any more, makes a wish: All stories and magic are to be banned so no one on earth can enjoy them anymore. His wish is granted, and all stories and magic are forced into a kingdom heavily guarded by troups of soldiers and their leader, the terrifying "Keeper". This "Keeper" really is quite frightening, and his main feat is that he forced Gepetto (yes, from "Pinnocchio") to build him music boxes in which he displays the prettiest fairy tale characters for his own enjoyment, one of them Tinker Bell. Only with the help of three new friends, made on present day earth, can Peter free the magic and rescue Tinker Bell. Sounds good, doesn't it? A little like the script of an 80s cartoon version of Peter Pan (not THE cartoon version, obviously, and not really because the children would be an international crew), but still good. Unfortunately, only about 20 pages are actually concerned with this magic kingdom and the rescue, what's left over is Peter Pan, on present day earth, dancing to 'NSYNC and learning what a shower is from his new friends Buddy, Sean and Crystal (I just think the names are so funny, I don't know why). They spend a while in a hospital making a newborn child laugh (you know, so a fairy is born) so that they'll have fairy dust to fly with (and in this book, fairy dust is basically dandruff, by the way), and another while in Neverland teaching Peter what it means to be responsible. (Because I guess the best people to teach him that are 21st century kids). And in the end Peter grows up to be with Crystal. You know, romantically. That's terrible and wrong but I'll give the book this, it ends on the note that there'll always be a Peter Pan, just not always the same one. That's a nice and clever thought. Unfortunately, there's just so much else wrong. Apart from the weird and unsatisfying pacing, the whole magic and stories being locked away thing never pays off. Everyone still remembers stories. Heck, every single child we meet in this book still knows about Peter Pan! We're never shown a desolate, barren earth where no one remembers stories, and we never really see the fairy tale characters suffer in the new kingdom because so little time is spent there. There's no sense of threat or urgency to propel the adventure along. The writing has some great moments when the author lets go and describes for example the magic kingdom, but is at other times terribly forced, stilted and patronizing, as if the author thought there was a certain way to write for children and had to force herself to do it. In all, I'm giving this two stars for ideas, but no more because the execution is lacking and it kind of angers me that a large part of this book is set in a children's hospital, and yet no mention of Great Ormond Street Hospital is made anywhere near the text. (To be fair, I kind of had a feeling, sometimes, that this book was supposed to be set in London, and in GOSH, and then the author had to change things, but that might just be me hoping.)

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book is just waiting to be adapted into a movie. whether or not that is a good thing is up to you. joss whedon might have fun writing the screenplay, but then again I might, too.