The other day I was feeling guilty because I had never read the children's fantasy classic, The Phantom Tollbooth. When I saw it was available on OverDrive I jumped at the opportunity to assuage my guilt.Milo is bored of everything. Then one day a large toy arrives at his house with his name on it. It is a tollbooth, like those you see at the entrance to a toll road. It comes with an instruction book and some coins to pay the toll. Once Milo pays the toll, he is whisked away in his little toy electric car into a world of fantasy.
This book has a similar flavor to Alice in Wonderland. There is not really a strong plot, and Milo is not a well developed character, but the people and creatures he meets are interesting enough to carry the book. They are all personifications of plays on words (e.g. the "watchdog" on the cover) and there are many puns and much snappy patter. I know people for whom this was their favorite book as a child, though contemporary children might not know some of the old fashion terms used in the puns (it was written in the '60's). None the less, I found it amusing and am glad I read it. (279 p.)
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