Sisters of Neversea by Cynthia Leitich Smith

 In this reimaging of the story of Peter Pan, Wendy, her step sister, Lily, and their little brother, Michael meet Peter Pan in their bedroom as their parents sit in a car discussing their upcoming separation.  Fanciful Wendy is eager to follow Pan to adventures, and easily convinces four-year-old Mikey to come with her.  Lily is the analytical one, and worries about the danger of following a stranger to a strange place. After Wendy and Michael leave, she reluctantly follows, hoping to rescue them from their own foolheartiness.  Once in Neverland, Wendy soon discovers that Peter is arrogant, thoughtless and cruel, and that most of the Lost Boys fear him.  Lily, who is a Native American, ends up with the other native kids on the island, brought there to play the role of "savage in'jun" in Peter's violent games. The girls have to overcome their own family issues and work together to save themselves and the other lost children from Peter's tyranny. 

This book got starred reviews when it came out in 2021.  It addresses the problems of racism and sexism in Barrie's classic that have bothered modern readers. I wonder, though, if the author actually read Barrie's Peter and Wendy, or if she just watched the Disney cartoon version.  The cartoon version is very un-PC, and so is the book, but if you focus on that you miss what is enchanting about the original Peter Pan. The orginal is about navigating the wonderful and painful path from childhood to adulthood.  This book is about regrets and how giving in to escapism leads to corruption and brutality.  I can see what the author, who is a Native Amercian, was trying to do, and I think it is something worth doing, but what she ended up with is quite dark and has none of the charm of the original story. I think it could have been possible to get the same message across without Peter being so cold blooded.  It was a bit hard for me to get through and I don't think I will be recommending it to anyone. (plus it bothers me that Lily on the cover looks African American instead of Native American) (201, 320 p.)