The Book of Lost Things

These stories were very old, as old as people, and they had survived because they were very powerful indeed. These were the tales that echoed in the head long after the books that contained them were cast aside. They were both an escape from reality and an alternative reality themselves. They were so old, and so strange, that they found a kind of existence independent of the pages they occupied. The world of the old tales existed parallel to ours, as David’s mother had once told him, but sometimes the wall separating the two became so thin and brittle that the two worlds started to blend into each other.

That was when the trouble started. That was when the bad things came.

It takes great skill to set the tone of a book from the onset, and John Connolly, author of The Book of Lost Things, has it down pat. Right from the get-go you know that you are in for one creepy read.

The protagonist, 12 year old David, has just lost his mother who has been ill. He was close to his mom and both of them shared a passion for the written word. As his mother lay dying, David would read aloud the stories of fairy tales and folk tales, dragons and knights that she loved so much.

Once his mother is gone, David safeguards her beloved books. The books though, don’t want to let David be and he begins to hear them whispering to him. He also starts having  “episodes” where he loses consciousness and has visions of another world unlike his own. His visions increase after moving from London to the countryside after his father re-marries and his step-mother gives birth to a baby boy Georgie. David grieves for his Mother and resents his new family. He takes the bedroom upstairs, where there are bookshelves full of old books. Again, the books begin to call to David, and he starts to hear his mother’s voice, calling to him to save her. Suddenly David is propelled from the world he is familiar with into an entire new world filled with trolls, wolves that are half man, fairy tale creatures the worst villain of all, the Crooked Man. David now is on a quest to the King, who is the keeper of The Book of Lost Things, in which he can find the answers to all he is looking for. Interspersed throughout his journey, David encounters many fairy tale creatures that he has read about, although are far more sinister than any fictional character. He begins to grow as the book goes on and changes from an angry, sad child to a caring, strong young man.

There is so much to say about this powerful book, and I am afraid that I could never do it justice. This is more than a fairy tale, but a wonderful coming of age story, a scary bed-time story and fantastic tale all wrapped up in one neat package. One thing I can say though is that this book has one of the most frightening, sinister fictional characters ever to grace the page – the Crooked Man. Just the description of his appearance gives me goosebumps:

The figure was slightly hunched, as thought it had become so used to sneaking about that its body had contorted, the spine curving, the arms like twisted branches, the fingers clutching, ready to snatch at whatever it saw. Its nose was narrow and hooked, an it wore a crooked hat upon its head.

and

It seemed to be debating with itself as to what to do next, for David saw its left hand move to its pointed chin and stroke it softly. While it was thinking, it glanced over its shoulder and down toward the woods below. It saw David and froze for an instant before dropping to the floor, but in that moment David saw coal black eyes set in a pale face so long and thin that it seems to have been stretched on a rack. Its mouth was very wide, and its lips were very, very dark, like old sour wine.

Even the book cover has a sinister feel to it. The blood red color, vines of black thorns which twine themselves around the typography, the innocent boy reading, the dark figure to the left of the word “the” bent over a cane. The book cover evokes the feel of the book and while I’ve seen other covers for this same book, none of them encompass the essence of what lurks inside quite like this one. It is pure graphic genius.  

I expected The Book of Lost Things was going to be an eerie read after I saw a review for it over at Bloggin’ ’bout Books, but I sure wasn’t expecting how emotionally involved I became with the characters and spent the last two chapters of the book in tears. It was just one of those novels that once you put down, you wish you hadn’t read it so you could experience it all over again.  In an interview at the back of The Book of Lost Things, John Connolly writes “there is a kind of perfect unity to The Book of Lost Things. It begins as it should begin, and it ends exactly how it should end – for me at least. I’ve written the best book that I could possibly write at this stage, being the person and writer that I am. I can live with what I’ve done here.” I agree Mr. Connolly, I agree.

Want to see more great reviews of The Book of Lost Things? Just check out Stuff as Dreams are Made on, Things Mean a Lot and Dewey. This was one more book I’ve read for Carl’s Once Upon a Time Challenge.