Peter Pan

Forget what Disney told you about the story of Peter Pan – the differences between this book and the movie are astounding.

I picked this up curious to read the story behind the movie I had grown up watching, expecting it to be different than the Disney film, but not as drastically different as it turned out to be.

The general storyline and premise is the same: Peter Pan follows the story of the Darling children and their adventures to Neverland with Peter Pan and the Lost Boys. The boys are excited to have Wendy Darling in their midst, as they are all desperate to have a mother-figure in their lives.

However, the similarities seem to end there.

The need for a mother-figure is repeated countless times throughout the novel, in a way that begins to get uncomfortable for modern readers (at least in my case it did). Barrie focused on stereotypical female roles and reactions throughout the entire book (not suprising, considering the time period in which this book was written). Jealousy and submissive-wife roles are present through the entire novel. There are also several instances in the book where a sexual undertone takes hold, which was surprising as this is advertised as (and intended to be) a children’s novel.

Peter Pan is a truly cocky main character. He’s incredibly irritating from an adult’s standpoint, but likely absolutely captivating from a child’s viewpoint. His reasoning behind his reluctance to grow up and stubbornness to remain by himself in Neverland is understandable and makes the reader start to wonder “do I really have to grow up?”

It was an entertaining and quick read, and it introduces an interesting concept about the perceptions of adulthood and the way society has deemed it necessary to become “an average person” with no imagination and lacking the ability to have fun.

The edition I read contained notes on the author’s life at the front of the book, however I chose to wait until the end of the book to read the section containing this information, as I wanted to experience the book without any external influence/bias on the story. The insight into the author’s life made a lot of sense out of the focus of “never growing up” and the desire to have a mother-figure in his life. Much of the book reflected his life and his idealistic world where he would not have to become an adult or take on adult responsibilities and instead remain a child forever, lost in his imagination.

Prior to reading the blurb about Barrie’s life, I would have given this book a 3.5/5 stars. After reading the blurb about his life, I give this book a 4/5.

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