Peter Pan sequel commissioned by GOSH

[andrew]

I couldn't agree more... let's hope the book is a resounding success for the sake of Great Ormond Street's sick children, but it seems about as close to Barrie's complex creation as J Depp did to his creator. I've never read Harry Potter, but I assume the styles are none too different. But any criticism seems churlish, given  the sequel's aim = to make pots of dosh for GOSH = let's just hope it does!

[Rebecca]

I can't add much to Makaira and Andrew's posts, except to say that I was also very disappointed by the book. I got the impression that McCaughrean tried to imitate Barrie's style, but whereas JMB's Peter Pan is dark, hers is simply depressing. And as an avid fan of Harry Potter, I see no similarity there, either. Once you start reading Harry Potter, you can't stop turning the pages, but this book was so long and depressing that I could barely finish it (and I don't understand how children could).

Has anybody else heard rumors that they're making a movie out of it?

[Makaira]

The rumors are not rumors anymore, yes the movie rights have been bought.  I haven't heard anymore about a screenplay and whathave you but i am not surprised.  although in the beginning when the sequel first came out there were raving reviews, lately i have read some reviewswhich are not so good.  There are even websites for parents which don't recommend the book because the story line is too complex for young kids and too dull for young adults.

Rebecca, would you be interested in another sequel story line?  ...or anyone else for that matter.  I delved deeply into Barrie's life utilizing Andrew's biography and others to establish a clear understanding of his characters and moreso of his play and book.  I started writing my book before even knowing there was a commissioned one, but I was complelled to write it anyway, finishing it inless than 3 months...much more psychological than the Scarlet one and a completely different story. it's targeted to young adults.  any takers to read a few scenes?

[Rebecca]

any takers to read a few scenes?

Sure! And thanks for the info about the PP in S movie. I'm quite surprised that the movie rights were bought so soon after publication. Although I wasn't a big fan of the book, I look forward to seeing the movie someday - sometimes the movies actually turn out better than the books. (Mary Poppins and Lord of the Rings are two good examples.)

On an unrelated note, today I convinced my screenwriting professor to let me do my final project on different movies about Peter Pan. I plan to include ... the 1924 silent Peter Pan, Disney's Peter Pan, Hogan's Peter Pan, Spielberg's Hook, Andrew's The Lost Boys, Finding Neverland, (possibly) filmed versions of the stage play, and (hopefully) a 2003 indie film Neverland, that I've heard some very interesting and strange things about. I don't think I've ever looked forward to a school project so much!

Oh, and my prof also invited me to consider movies "Peter Pan-esque" themes. Any suggestions would be really appreciated.

[Makaira]

Wow sounds like an interesting project!  Are you becoming a screenwriter?
Would love to share, but can you send me an email address...my email is in my profile.  don't want to divulge info on public site.
I did a similar analysis of Pan related books, I can also send you summaries o the various books out there on the market...
I have to se that Neverland film...sounds very intriguing.
As to other similar films or themes, I've always wondered if Neverland was the first "other land" like Wonderland, Narnia, even Neverending Story...there are many similar themes...look at bridge to Terebithia which his currently out.
Although completely unrelated to Peter Pan, I have hear that Pan's labyrinth is a masterpiece, it deals with a young girl finding a new land while escaping the harsh cfruelty of her father's rule of her country.

I don't know what exactly you are focusing your project on, but I'd be happy to help in any way I can.
Please send me an email so I can give you my notes as to Pan related literature.
Best of Luck,
Annie (AKA Makaira)

[SingsWithRavens]

I've read McCaughrean's book upwards twenty times, and discover new things each time I read it. To be brief, it is a marvelous book in my opinion, written with startling fluidity and grace. It has depth of plot, wondrous twists and turns, and really does allow my imagination to run wild. Despite rather weak characterization and a few plot holes, I believe McCaughrean did justice to Barrie's original, keeping the language light, but the meaning deep. 
I'm quite excited to see how the movie will turn out...let alone who will be casted.

[AlexanderDavid]

I don't know if I read the same book....

I hated it.

Okay, I didn't hate it all throughout, there were some parts I liked, and some I even thought worked sequentially from the original, but that only further served to disappoint me with all the problems.  Sloppy writing, for one thing--I never felt like I'd been taken back to the same world with the same characters.

And the ending was just plain unforgivable--looked like someone tacked on an ending and didn't care how they came to it.  Makes me think the author was writing the ANTI-Peter Pan with this book.  The ending is the part I hated, but that's the last chance the author has to make a lasting impression.  And quite frankly, I am not impressed.

[SingsWithRavens]

There are many fans of -Peter Pan- I've met who didn't like Scarlet at all. I mostly hear what you've said above: it's not the same. The story is melancholy; the characters are more brittle than the original; the Neverland isn't what it was in Barrie's book. But, from how I understand it, that was McCaughrean's intent.
-Peter Pan in Scarlet- is, at least for me, a rather moving book for a novel intended for children. I empathize with Ravello, that tragic character who longs for the past but is powerless to wish it back; a character who has experienced horrific trials and instead of running from them, faces them, broken, but defiant. Ravello listens out and listens in...much like me.
And Pan. Peter's metamorphosis and eventual fall into the abyss of despair shows us something Barrie really didn't: Peter's humanity. As much as many fans of the One-and-Only-Child probably won't like to hear this, I really do like how McCaughrean took Peter's immortality away. She gave Peter weakness, thus giving her plot depth; her characters life.
I don't believe this sequel is the Anti-Peter Pan so much as a wake up call. McCaughrean's Neverland is dangerous, even deadly. It's a gritty world much like our own, where all of our decisions and actions have consequences; where the test of courage is weighed heavily upon our shoulders; where we often look ahead to brighter times - the peaks of mountains - but sometimes find nothing but memories of a distant past, haunting, ever haunting, and despair. In -Peter Pan in Scarlet-, McCaughrean took Barrie's dream-world of a child's ideal reality and washed a bit of the real world into it. Yes the story may be grim and dark, the language choppy and clipped, but it has much to say about the world in which we live.
In regard to the epilogue, however, I must say I don't believe it was entirely necessary. McCaughrean must have tacked it on for some reason other than this, but I have a creeping suspicion she only put it there because the novel "needed" a clean, happy end. Without the epilogue, the story would have ended on a rather dark note, something that is simply unheard of in most children's literature. Though it does wrap the story up, it wasn't entirely necessary and is thus awkward.
All in all though, I really enjoyed the book for its gritty messages and dark themes. It contrasts with Barrie's original, but in a tasteful, welcome way (to me, at least). But, as always, to each his own!

[AlexanderDavid]

Considering that it's meant to be a Peter Pan sequel, I don't think that "that was the author's intent" is enough of an excuse for some of what she did.

The ending in particular: she took what had originally been a really neat and Barrie-esque idea, and then completely destroyed it to tack on the phony ending that also goes against the canon of the first story and makes it impossible for them to belong in the same universe at all.  Whether she's to blame or the publishing company is, or whoever is to blame, that ending deserves to be torn out and incinerated.

[SingsWithRavens]

Perhaps. Some of the errors she made are a little ridiculous, or even thick-headed (not being able to fly without a shadow? What about Pan in the first book loosing his?)...but I still don't think these errors completely take away from the sequel air (aside from the pointless epilogue, which makes no sense on a literary standpoint).
For me, the continuity issues are outweighed by the novel's symbols/motifs (of Time, dreams, and the Past), underlying messages, and occasionally poetic language. I really enjoy reading books with symbolic depth and fluid, consistent themes - hence my enjoyment of Scarlet. But really, as I said before, each person likes to see - or prefers to not see - different things in each book they read.
 

[AlexanderDavid]

It was just too hard for me to get into it as a story with characters--I ended up reading it more like an editor than a book audience, which is not a good sign.

I still prefer Peter Pan's NeverWorld by Peter Von Brown as a sequel, especially since that was actually based on Barrie's own idea for a sequel, and since it was written well and drew me in as a story.

[SingsWithRavens]

That's too bad...I've read a few books like that, and it's wretched. Ah well.
I've never heard of Peter Pan's Neverworld...I'll have to look into it. I've gotten a lot of suggestions for Peter Pan related books, I just have to buy them.

[AlexanderDavid]

That's too bad...I've read a few books like that, and it's wretched. Ah well.
I've never heard of Peter Pan's Neverworld...I'll have to look into it. I've gotten a lot of suggestions for Peter Pan related books, I just have to buy them.

Well, if you do read it I hope you like it.    Apparently it was entered into the contest and obviously lost, for some reason I can't fathom.

[Jay]

I've read Peter Pan in Scarlet and agree with some of the points from both Alexander David and SingsWithRavens. The plot does seem over-convoluted and the ending contrived, but I liked the way the author got Peter's cocky and selfish ways. Plot aside, I like her style of writing and I think she's captured a little of Barrie's voice, especially the dark side.

I haven't read Peter Pan's Neverworld, but have to admit I am prejudiced against self-published books, and probably won't read it. I've dipped into the author's blog and found his tone somewhat too self-satisfied without much sense of humour or irony, and quite hard to take in. He obviously sees himself as self-appointed heir to Barrie, because he claims to have taken Barrie's own idea for a sequel. All credit to him for developing that seed of idea, but if it is as good as he claims, why has he not been able to find a 'real' publisher?

I suspect however that whatever book was chosen as the official sequel, opinion would be divided...

[AlexanderDavid]

I haven't read Peter Pan's Neverworld, but have to admit I am prejudiced against self-published books, and probably won't read it. I've dipped into the author's blog and found his tone somewhat too self-satisfied without much sense of humour or irony, and quite hard to take in. He obviously sees himself as self-appointed heir to Barrie, because he claims to have taken Barrie's own idea for a sequel. All credit to him for developing that seed of idea, but if it is as good as he claims, why has he not been able to find a 'real' publisher?

Peter Von Brown has responded with the following information:

"When I completed my book, I had no intention to publish. I wrote out of compulsion upon finding Barrie’s ideas for more. As the Centennial of Pan approached, I dusted it off and tried my luck. At first luck smiled. An agent with Sterling Lord Literistic deemed it brilliant and fought to see it produced. Little, Brown and Company showed interest. However, the complex proceedings regarding Peter Pan at the time rendered publication impossible. Even with the connections of Sterling Lord himself. When the “official” sequel emerged, I quickly became disenchanted. Once able, I ventured forth again. After more submitting and much deliberation, I decided Lulu to be the best option for this particular novel. A “special case,” as it were, like Peter Pan. I wanted to provide an adventure derived from Barrie. I fully understand and appreciate the clout and achievement of hooking an agent with a query letter and landing a “real” publisher. I thank you for your well wishes, as I am gearing up to pitch an original novel via the proper channels. Good luck in your endeavors as well. And thank you for allowing me to present my viewpoint."