cover image Always Neverland

Always Neverland

Zoe Barton. Harper, $15.99 (320p) ISBN 978-0-06-196325-4

Debut novelist Barton delivers a modern take on Peter Pan, as Peter and Tinker Bell fly feisty 11-year-old narrator Ashley off to Neverland. Much is made of the lineage of "Wendy girls," who mother the Lost Boys and supervise spring cleaning, as well as how independent Ashley fails to fit this traditional mold ("The other Wendy girls had to be a bunch of pushovers if they just helped the Lost Boys do all their chores without a peep of protest"). Instead, Ashley seeks her own adventures, outwits Captain Hook, and befriends mermaids. Barton has fun creating her own Neverland lore, including trees that can sprout sandwiches and a raid of a fairy colony to collect dust. Well-loved Peter Pan characters also get 21st-century twists, such as the crocodile who swallows Ashley's mother's iPod and announces his approach with Christmas carols. Though none of the characters, including Ashley herself, fully materialize as much more than archetypes upon which they are based, middle-grade readers ought to find Barton's restaging a lighthearted introduction to the classic story. Ages 8%E2%80%9312. Agent: Nancy Coffey Literary. (Oct.)