The Child Thief

Without a doubt. I enjoyed every book of Brom I´ve read thus far. But this? I love this. I don´t read books twice. Never have and never felt the need to, but if I could monkey paw myself into forgetting everything about this book just to read it again and be so gloriously gaslight again I´d do it in a heartbeat. Please beware: The Story is really dark. Child abuse, death and neglect are the key theme of this book, and it does not hold back, though not to graphic it gets intense. While grim they don´t feel sensationalized and are indeed necessary for the plot. Otherwise, the childthief is at its core a coming-of-age story and as almost all of Brom´s books, a story about kinship through outsider hood. It takes you along, makes you feel save and then rips the carpet under your feet away in the-as before mentioned- most glorious process of manipulation.

Not all fairy tales have a happy ending, or a happy beginning or middle either. Brom’s highly-imaginative yet brutal version of Peter Pan “The Child Thief” is one of those . It isn’t sweet and happy like the Disney version. This story is harsh, brutal, ugly and absolutely brilliant! The author’s world building skills are beautiful (his drawings and illustrations even more so). Peter Pan is not a nice guy, but he is not a bad guy. He is, like most people, somewhere in between. I just love how every character is so three-dimensional, multifaceted, complex and individual! I loved every minute of this book and I am so glad to have it in my collection.