Oct 312013
The Phantom Tollbooth is an acknowledged classic, because it is delightful, clever, and generally fabulous. Like words? This book’s for you. Clever puzzles? That, too. Maths-based magic? Yes. Milo is a young boy bored by everything. Until, upon finding a box in his room, and despite how boring it looks, Milo puts together the kit and finds a tollbooth, complete with coins. Through the tollbooth lies a land bereft of rhyme and reason – and a lesson. Often imitated, never matched. I bought it for my friend’s daughter three times: two birthdays and Christmas. Because my memory is made of cheese.