Estimated Reading Time 2 Minutes
Rating: 
Genre: Horror/Thriller, Fantasy, Mystery
First sentence: Once upon a time — for that is how all stories should begin — there was a boy who lost his mother.
Favorite Quote From the Book:
Before she came ill, David’s mother would often tell him that stories were alive. They weren’t alive in the way that people were alive, or even dogs or cats. (…) Stories were different, though: they came alive in the telling. Without a human voice to read them aloud, or a pair of wide eyes following them by torch light beneath a blanket, they had no real existence in our world. (…) They lay dormant, hoping for the chance to emerge. Once someone started to read them, they could begin to change. They could take root in the imagination and transform the reader. Stories wanted to be read, David’s mother would whisper. They needed it. It was the reason they forced themselves from their world into ours. They wanted us to give them life.
Suggested Audience: Adults (Some of the material in this book is questionable for young readers).
Publisher:
Washington Square Press (October 16, 2007), Paperback, 480 pages / ISBN 978-0743298902
Summary from Author’s Site:
‘Everything You Can Imagine is Real’
High in his attic bedroom, twelve-year-old David mourns the loss of his mother. He is angry and he is alone, with only the books on his shelf for company.
But those books have begun to whisper to him in the darkness, and as he takes refuge in the myths and fairytales so beloved of his dead mother he finds that the real world and the fantasy world have begun to meld. The Crooked Man has come, with his mocking smile and his enigmatic words: ‘Welcome, your majesty. All hail the new king.’
And as war rages across Europe, David is violently propelled into a land that is both a construct of his imagination yet frighteningly real, a strange reflection of his own world composed of myths and stories, populated by wolves and worse-than-wolves, and ruled over by a faded king who keeps his secrets in a legendary book . . .
The Book of Lost Things.
After Thoughts:
I have very mixed feeling after reading this book. It is extremely well written, and the number of wonderful quotes in this book is extraordinary. I was engrossed in the story immediately and very much enjoyed the experience.This is a horror/thriller fantasy novel, so some of the images were disturbing, but nothing over what you would expect if you are familiar with this type of book. In fact, if you are familiar with Fairy Tales in their true form, this story fits in with them perfectly.
I struggled with some of the attitudes in the book concerning religion and the generalization of how religious people act toward those who disagree with their beliefs; specifically towards a gay character in the book. But I agreed with a lot of things too. I agree with the author’s thoughts about growing up and finding yourself and learning how to make the most of life and yourself in a world that can indeed be a very scary place.
All things considered, I think I am a better person after reading this book because it made me step back and take a look at myself, and that is about the highest recommendation I could give.
