“There was once a boy named Milo who didn’t know what to do with himself—not just sometimes, but always.”

From Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth.

Milo is bored by everything and absolutely nothing captures his attention.  One afternoon, with nothing to do and nothing to care about, Milo decides to open a mysterious box that has his name on it.  When he opens the package and follows the assembly instructions, Milo has before him a little car and a tollbooth.  Since he has nothing else to do, through the toll booth he goes; Milo is instantly transferred to a magical world with lots of different dangers, places, and characters.  Milo quickly makes friends with a half-dog/half-clock Watchdog named Tock on the way to a city of words, Dictionopolis.  Since the banishment of the princesses Rhyme and Reason, Dictionopolis and Digitopolis (City of Numbers) have been at odds and the entire magical kingdom is suffering.  Somehow, Milo and Tock are given a guide (the constantly-unhappy Humbug) and tasked with traveling across the kingdom to bring the princesses back.  Every step of the journey is filled with more unique characters and challenges that all impress upon Milo the importance of time, the balance of reality and imagination, the value of choosing the right word, and much more.

Juster’s writing style is very entertaining throughout the entire book; he writes with a simplicity that is easy to follow, but the content is full of difficult-to-master subjects, topics, and ideas.  The illustrations scattered throughout the pages also aid the reader in connecting with the ever-unfolding story.  While this is a children’s book, the story is enjoyable for any age, with the deeper purpose of the story making it truly enjoyable for older readers.  A truly captivating read, The Phantom Tollbooth is a witty story that will hook readers of all ages from start to finish.