Today’s Throw Back Thursday read is actually what inspired my post yesterday, For the Love of (Audio) Books. Once my boys and I had finished listening to the first three Harry Potter books, we were in a real bind. We enjoyed listening to books in the car, but what to listen to next? My youngest was too young to continue on in the Harry Potter series. We needed to find something that we could all enjoy, including me.

One of our friends recommended Peter and the Starcatchers. I read the book first to see what I thought, and then we all listened to Jim Dale perform the story. (The series as a whole is wonderful, except for the last book. It was written differently than the others in the series and we didn’t like it as much.)

Peter and the Starcatchers

By Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson

5/5 Stairs

From Dave Barry’s blog at the Miami Herald:

In 2002, Ridley Pearson, a bestselling thriller writer, was reading J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan to his 5-year-old daughter, Paige.

A few pages into the book, she stopped him and asked, “How did Peter Pan meet Captain Hook in the first place?”

Over breakfast, Ridley told me about Paige’s question and said he thought it might make a fun children’s book — Peter Pan’s backstory. I said it sounded like a good idea. Ridley said, “Do you want to write it with me?” Not knowing anything about writing for children, I said sure.

If you’ve ever read anything by Dave Barry, you know he is funny. While I have not read any other books by Ridley Pearson, I see Dave Barry’s touch all over this book. It is full of fun and funny moments.

I love where the idea for the book originated. How did Peter Pan and Captain Hook meet? What is their back story? How did they end up on Neverland together with the Lost Boys and Pirates and a fairy named Tinkerbell? While this is a children’s book, the subject (and humor) really appeal to anyone. My boys loved getting “answers” to their Peter Pan origins questions, and the book was a real adventure.

Here is my original review from Goodreads:

Where did Peter Pan come from? How does he fly, and why does he never grow up? We learn the answers to these questions and so many more in this delightful novel by Barry and Pearson. And Jim Dale’s narration is just the icing on the cake. Fabulous tale, and touched on so many aspects of Peter Pan and the island of Neverland. Peter begins the tale as an orphan, being sent on a boat with four other orphan boys, unaware of what lies ahead. The book sucks you right in, and there are touches of humor throughout. Black Stache, the pirate captain, kept referring to his new, never-before-used sails, the Ladies. I started laughing out loud when the Ladies were at last unveiled. Many chuckle moments in the book, and lots of “aha! That’s where that came from.”