The Book of Lost Things

The Book of Lost Things follows a child who discovers a goblin-like shadow of a creature in his room and decides to follow it into the woods. Resonating a dark "Alice in Wonderland" -esque picture, this novel is hard to fault as a YA modern classic. 

Characters:

David is 12 years old and has a bad relationship with his father after he's due to get remarried. His father does sound like a really horrible man who seeks only to get his son out of the way - but David proves his own bravery by finding the "Book of Lost Things" and making his way around the course, only to decide his own fate at the hands of Jonathan. 

Themes:

The theme of "lost and found" is an obvious one, but also one that the book delves into extensively. It not only gives you a cyclic reality of David finding the "book" and then it being called "the book of lost things" - THEN you find the book and read David's tale as a kind of allegory in "the book of lost things". But, this book also explores the "lost" as David's biological mother and the "found" as his new one. 

Storyline:

The storyline reminds us of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Grimm's fairy tales",  just both of them are blended together and the line between real and unreal becomes lost itself. It is complex enough to write about, but not so complex as to lose the main train of thought. 

Verdict:

I give this book a 9.

100% characters:

David is a complex 12 year old with relatable qualities, yet also unbelievable strength. This makes David one of YA's modern great heroes.

100% themes:

The themes are well developed and the theme of "lost and found" is well explored in many real and unreal concepts that David himself must encounter. 

100% storyline:

An appropriate, yet original storyline that takes slight inspirations from Carrollian fiction and Grimm Tales; we see that David is growing up and now must let go of these fantasy worlds that he encounters in fairy tale fiction and this is what he must seek to lose. Another brave and close encounter with the lost and found.