Some children wish they never had to grow up. They may be surprised to discover that plenty of adults feel the same way. Many people want to escape reality, to fly away. Rebels want to defy authority. Daredevils and wallflowers alike may yearn to go on magnificent adventures.

For all of these reasons and more, readers have been drawn to the tale of Peter Pan for over one hundred years. I myself have always liked the story - but not for any of the aforementioned reasons. For example, I have always liked Tinker Bell. ( Read more... )

Film and Stage Adaptations

While I like some of the songs from the stage musical, I cannot stand the fact that Peter Pan is played by an adult woman. I feel it defeats the purpose. It's supposed to be the story of a boy who never grows up. A boy. Not an adult woman who looks like a young boy. I really think that's kind of creepy. ( Read more... )

I am looking forward to Disney's new Tinker Bell movie. Please let it be good. Please let it be good. This will be the first time Tinker Bell has ever clearly spoken in a film. Her emotions are usually punctuated by tinkling bells and sound effects, clearly relayed by her body language and her actions, but now she has a voice! Here's a clip in which Tink talks to the other fairies. Congratulations, Mae Whitman, for winning the role of Tink! I've always enjoyed Mae's performances in films.

Book Adaptations

The author granted Great Osmond Street Hospital with the rights to the story. Now, in an effort to retain and extend those rights, the hospital has selected Geraldine McCaughrean to write a sequel. Her creation, Peter Pan in Scarlet, was released in October of 2006. Scarlet is not be the first book based on the story of the eternally youthful boy. Many authors and publishers have attempted prequels, sequels, and companions to Barrie's works. I love some and loathe others. ( Read more... )

If you have yet to read the original version of Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie, please do so. Thanks to Project Gutenberg, you may read it online.

The original version of article was featured in the September issue of The Edge of the Forest, a children's literature monthly.

For more about Tinker Bell and other fairies in fiction, please check out my Fairy Nice booklist.

Searching for novels to use for a similar-stories unit in class? Want to stick to a certain theme and/or get multiple books for kids of various ages in the same household to share? Make your own boxed sets! Here are some ideas, mostly for readers aged 7 through 14.

Classic Staples
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll
Call of the Wild by Jack London
White Fang by Jack London

Collected and Myth Taken
Stock up on mythology, legends, fairy tales and plays!
A book of Greek myths
A book of Egyptian myths
A collection of myths from around the world
A collection of Irish fairy tales
Andrew Lang's Fairy Books
Tales of Mother Goose
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Charles Perrault's fairy tales
Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare
King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Thomas Malory or William Caxton (also suitable: the version by Roger Lancelyn Green, who has additional books of myths and legends)

Fairy Nice
The Fairy Rebel by Lynne Reid Banks
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
In the Realm of the Never Fairies: The Secret World of Pixie Hollow with text by Monique Peterson and illustrations by The Disney Storybook Artists, designed by Elizabeth Ryazantseva and Megan Krempels
The Trouble with Tink by Kiki Thorpe and Judith H. Clarke
The Complete Book of the Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker
The Fairy Realm series by Emily Rodda

Fantastic Adventures
The NeverEnding Story by Michael Ende
OutCast quartet by Christopher Golden and Thomas E. Sniegoski
The Owlboy series by Thomas E. Sniegoski
The Spiderwick Chronicles by Holly Black and Tony DeTerlizzi
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs
The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring by John Bellairs
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
So You Want to be a Wizard by Diane Duane
His Dark Materials trilogy by Philip Pullman

Turn of the Century: The Pride of the Pioneers
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
All-of-a-Kind Family by Sidney Taylor
Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson
Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Grand Jetes: For Hopeful Dancers
The Nutcracker and Mouse King by E.T.A. Hoffman
Noelle of the Nutcracker by Pamela Jean, illustrated by Jan Brett
Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
Dancing Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
The Sisters Impossible by J.D. Landis
Susie and the Ballet Family by Lee Wyndham
Dancing in Red Shoes Will Kill You by Dorian Cirrone
Grab more titles for dancers from the I am a Dancer booklist

Fun Times: Cute Comedies
Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary
Henry Huggins by Beverly Cleary
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
Everyone Else's Parents Said Yes by Paula Danziger
Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
Sixth Grade Secrets by Louis Sachar

Happy Hauntings: Ghostly Friends
The Ghost in the Third Row by Bruce Coville
The Ghost Wore Gray by Bruce Coville
A Doll in the Garden by Mary Downing Hahn
May Bird and the Ever After by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Mysteries, Murder, and Mischief
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
The Body of Evidence series by Christopher Golden
(There are ten books in this series. Start with: Body Bags)
Nancy Drew #1: The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene
The Hardy Boys #1: The Tower Treasure by Franklin W Dixon

Comic Relief and True Belief
Confessions of a Closet Catholic by Sarah Darer Littman
A Brief Chapter in My Impossible Life by Dana Reinhardt
Goy Crazy by Melissa Schorr
Never Mind the Goldbergs by Matthue Roth

Secrets on the Homefront: World War II
The Diary of Anne Frank
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Classic Inspiration: Love, Loss, and Jane Austen
Enthusiasm by Polly Shulman
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Dashwood Sisters' Secrets of Love by Rosie Rushton
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Austenland by Shannon Hale (for adults)

Communication is Key: The Lives of Annie Sullivan and Helen Keller
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
The Miracle Worker by William Gibson
Miss Spitfire by Sarah Miller
Helen Keller by Margaret Davidson, illustrated by Wendy Watson

Newfound Strength
Rules by Cynthia Lord
Reaching for Sun by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer
Hugging the Rock by Susan Taylor Brown
So B. It by Sarah Weeks

Don't Believe the Bullies
The Misfits by James Howe
Freak by Marcella Pixley
Leap of Faith by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

First Crushes
Shug by Jenny Han
Perfect Girl by Mary Hogan
If This is Love, I'll Take Spaghetti by Ellen Conford

Good Grief: Losing a Loved One
The Key to the Golden Firebird by Maureen Johnson
The Alison Rules by Catherine Clark
The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen
The Pursuit of Happiness by Tara Altebrando
Say Goodnight, Gracie by Julie Reece Deaver
For more on this and related topics, check out my Tough Issues for Teens booklist.

Want more ideas? Need additional suggestions? Feel free to ask!

If a book has a fairy on the cover, chances are I'll pick it up and read the plot summary. If it sounds good, I have to read the book. My two favorite fictional fairies - say that ten times fast - are Tinker Bell from Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie and Tiki from The Fairy Rebel by Lynne Reid Banks. I have been meaning to make a fairy booklist for quite some time, and now I will.

Classics
Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
A Midsummer Night's Dream by William Shakespeare
The Fairy Books by Andrew Lang

Artwork and Poetry
Flower Fairies books by Cicely Mary Barker (the originals, please)
In the Realm of the Never Fairies: The Secret World of Pixie Hollow, designed by Elizabeth Ryazantseva and Megan Krempels, with text by Monique Peterson and illustrations by The Disney Storybook Artists

Picture Books
The Tooth Fairy by Audrey Wood

Juvenile Fiction
The Fairy Rebel by Lynne Reid Banks

Juvenile Series
Fairy Realm by Emily Rodda
Disney Fairies by various authors
The Spiderwick Chronicles by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black

Teen Fiction
Tithe by Holly Black
Valiant by Holly Black
Ironside by Holly Black
Poison by Chris Wooding

Tink Tidbits

As mentioned earlier, I adore the character of Tinker Bell which J.M. Barrie created in the original version of Peter Pan. I also like Disney's depiction of her.

Now I'm her neighbor. Visit me in Pixie Hollow and leave me a message!

I cannot wait to see the Tinker Bell movie coming out this fall!

Related Posts: Peter Pan and Friends, Sassy Sidekicks of Children's Literature, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

They are the best friends. The siblings. The next-door-neighbors.
They help solve mysteries. Stand up to bullies. Run student council campaigns.
They are the Sassy Sidekicks of Children's Literature.

They don't have to be sassy, mind you. I just like that word. However, they do have to be true sidekicks. ( Read more... )

Add your suggestions to the list by posting a comment with the book or series title followed by the name of the sidekick(s). I will add the suggestions of others and mark the books I haven't read with an asterisk. I put my own favorite sidekicks in bold.

The List (70 sidekicks so far)
An Abundance of Katherines: Hassan
Alice McKinley series: Liz and Pam
Anatopsis: Uno
Anne of Green Gables series: Diana Barry
Artemis Fowl series: Butler
Bartimaeus trilogy: Kitty
The Bermudez Triangle: Parker
Betsy and Tacy series: Tacy and Tib
The Book Thief: Rudy
Casson Family series*: Sarah
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory: Grandpa Joe
Coraline: The unnamed cat
Edgar and Ellen: Pet
Emily of New Moon trilogy: Ilsa
Enthusiasm: Ashleigh
Escape to Witch Mountain: Winkie the Cat
Freaky Friday: Boris
The Great Brain series: J.D.
Green Knowe series: Grandmother Oldknow
Gregor the Overlander*: Luxa and Boots
Harriet the Spy: Janie and Sport
Harry Potter series: Hermione and Ron
Heidi: Peter and Clara
Henry Huggins series: Ribsy
His Dark Materials trilogy: Pantalaimon
Inkspell*: Farid
Jimmy Coates series: Felix Muzbeke
Johnny Dixon series: Fergie
Keys to the Kingdom series: Suzy Turquoise Blue and Leaf
King Matt the First: Klu-Klu
A Little Princess: Becky
Little Women: Laurie
The Lone Ranger stories*: Tonto
May Bird trilogy: Somber Kitty
M.T. Anderson's Thrilling Tales: Lily and Jasper Dash
My Side of the Mountain trilogy: Frightful
Nancy Drew series: Bess and George
The NeverEnding Story: Falkor
Nina Tanleven trilogy: Chris
Penny from Heaven: Frankie
Percy Jackson & the Olympians series: Annabeth and Grover
Peter Pan: Tinker Bell
Pippi Longstocking trilogy: Mr. Nilsson the monkey
Prydain Chronicles*: Eilonwy
Sabriel: Mogget
Series of Unfortunate Events: Duncan and Isadora Quagmire
Silverwing trilogy*: Kate de Vries
The Sisters Grimm series: Puck
Swallows & Amazons series: Captain Flint
Then There Were Five*: Mark Herron
To Kill a Mockingbird: Dill
Trixie Belden series: Honey
Un Lun Dun: Deeba
Under the Lilacs: Phebe
Voyage of the Dawn Treader: Reepicheep
Winnie-the-Pooh: Piglet
What Katy Did*: Clover
What Katy Did At School*: Rose Red

This list was inspired by Jen Robinson's Cool Girls from Children's Literature and Cool Boys from Children's Literature and Journey Woman's Great Antagonists of Children's Literature.

Miss Erin created a book character meme and tagged me.

Character you'd most like to have over for tea?
I don't care for tea, but I don't think Anne and Diana from Anne of Green Gables would mind, as they'd want cordial instead. Let's compromise and have hot chocolate! :)

Character you'd most like to have as a sibling?
I love the sisters in All-of-a-Kind Family by Sidney Taylor.

Character you'd most like to be friends with?
( Read more... )