Review: The only thing she ever loved about Peter was the memory of him
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 4, 2014
Fairytales usually start with "a long time ago, in a place far away" and end with “happily ever after,” offering metaphors that are universal. In 'Wendy and the Lost Boys' the author, Barbara Silkstone, modified the classic story of Peter Pan, offering a unique, contrary point of view.The story is told in the voice of Wendy Darlin, with a gritty language that is modern, contemporary, and full of spunk. When talking about the pirates she says, “One grabbed my round the waist and did a lumbering polka…. He forced his lips on mine. His breath was a lethal combination of onions and salami.”Peter Payne (note the altered pronunciation, which alters the meaning of his name) was her first love. They were high school sweethearts for one year. Two decades later, she still keeps and old trinket, a locket he has given her on their last date. “His kisses were as sweet as whipped cream and twice as tasty.”Emblematic of a generation that tried to retain eternal youth, and then had to contend with the realities of aging and responsibility, Peter’s presence in the story is felt despite having few appearances. It is up to Wendy to let go of him, in order to grow up. “I knew the only thing I ever loved about Peter was the memory of him… It was time to let go of something that never really existed."In this story, the Lost boys are valuable artifacts from ancient Egypt, cut from solid black diamond. Charlie Hook orchestrates a mysterious disappearance of them, for no better reason than the thrill to get away with it. Roger, a freelance archeologist who states that he retrieves stolen antiquities, explains, “This box contains the shadows of twelve of the infant sons of the fourth dynasty pharaoh. These shadows are over five thousand year old.”This is a mystery wrapped in romance, a coming of age of a woman who is already an adult, but is she really? Clearly, she is attracted to Roger, “He gave me a kiss I could feel in my shoes.” Saving the Lost Boys is a worthy goal, But the real challenge for her is finding herself in her own shoes.Five stars.