Not enough of the fairy tales are included to truly feel like you've shown us the full picture of this world. We need more!

High in his attic bedroom, twelve-year-old David mourns the death of his mother, with only the books on his shelf for company. But those books have begun to whisper to him in the darkness. Angry and alone, he takes refuge in his imagination and soon finds that reality and fantasy have begun to meld. While his family falls apart around him, David is violently propelled into a world that is a strange reflection of his own—populated by heroes and monsters and ruled by a faded king who keeps his secrets in a mysterious book, The Book of Lost Things. One thing you should know about me, is that I LOVE fairy-tales, especially the ones that contain a dark twist. and oh my .. this book gave me everything. I would recommend it to everyone, because i feel like it's something that must be read at least once in our lives.And, in truth, I prefer to hunt children. They make better sport, and better trophies for my wall, for they are beautiful." World War II is on, and 12-year old David is mourning the loss of his mother and moving to the home of his father's new wife and their baby son; and all he chooses to have for company is a book collection that has been left in his new room. Yay for books!

Throughout the book many well-known children’s fairy tales were altered. Which story did you find the most changed for the better or for the worse? How did these changes impact the moral or the essence of that particular story? Many of the stories are significantly more violent; how does this change their reading? What does violence add to the fairy tales? High in his attic bedroom, twelve-year-old David mourns the death of his mother, with only the books on his shelf for company. But those books have begun to whisper to him in the darkness. Angry and alone, he takes refuge in his imagination and soon finds that reality and fantasy have begun to meld. While his family falls apart around him, David is violently propelled into a world that is a strange reflection of his own -- populated by heroes and monsters and ruled by a faded king who keeps his secrets in a mysterious book, The Book of Lost Things. So I really recommend this one to those who enjoy fantasy and to those that appreciate the escapism that books can bring. John Connolly’s 2006 revisionist fantasy will draw many comparisons due to it’s fable / mythical themes. Most notably will be a comparison to CS Lewis’ Narnia books since this is set in England during WWII and our young protagonist finds his way into an alternate world. It’s alternate fairy tales will also draw comparison to both Gregory Maguire and L. Frank Baum. The urban fantasy parts made me also think of Charles de Lint’s fine work.

I loved David as a main character, he had many flaws like losing his temper and being jealous of his little brother but that is normal for a twelve-year-old and I cheered him on during his adventure. I hurt when he was hurt and was happy when he was able to save the day and be the hero. I saw myself in David at times and the imagination that the author must have is awe-inspiring. I loved how the theme of the importance of books and reading shines through the magic and how good always wins over evil. This will delight the older child in all of us and remember...be careful what you wish for. He had quite liked the dwarfs. He often had no idea what they were talking about, but for a group of homicidal, class-obsessed small people, they were really rather good fun.”