Embedded Files
Reimagined Classics/Audiobook
Lost in the neverwoods
Lost in the neverwoods
By Aiden Thomas
Format 384 pages, Hardcover
Published March 23, 2021 by Swoon Reads
ISBN 9781250313973 (ISBN10: 125031397X)
Book summary from the publisher:
When children go missing in the small coastal town of Astoria, people look to Wendy for answers.
It's been five years since Wendy and her two brothers went missing in the woods, but when the town’s children start to disappear, the questions surrounding her brothers’ mysterious circumstances are brought back into light. Attempting to flee her past, Wendy almost runs over an unconscious boy lying in the middle of the road, and gets pulled into the mystery haunting the town.
Peter, a boy she thought lived only in her stories, claims that if they don't do something, the missing children will meet the same fate as her brothers. In order to find them and rescue the missing kids, Wendy must confront what's waiting for her in the woods.
My Thoughts:
I felt like this concept had a lot of potential but didn't quite deliver. I did not like the audiobook narration because it sounded almost robotic and stilted and wonder if that also kept me from fully engaging with the story. The author did a good job of creating a growing sense of urgency, menace, and anxiety but the magic elements felt forced and underdeveloped. I did think the exploration of trauma and the way it impacts a family and especially a child who directly experiences a deeply traumatic event would interest adolescent readers.
Programming ideas:
Invite students to reimagine other fairy tales or classic stories and share their ideas through art or writing.
Do a book bento project based on this story or another fairy tale or classic story.
Create a display of classic books and their reimagined versions and let students vote on which they liked better. Provide a supply of a small object (bingo marker, paperclips, pom-pom balls) that students can place in one of two clear jars to cast their vote.
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