Amazon Customer Review: Belongs to the canon of best books January 18, 2005 By Tsila Sofer Elguez Format:Hardcover The first two chapters of this wonderful book were so overwhelmingly sad I almost choked while reading them aloud to my son. A mother's greatest fears come alive in these chapters and at some points I could not believe I was reading a children's book. While the rest of the story is a little less sad (at least on its apparent side) it works on our deepest fears, mainly loosing a loved one, being alone. These however are my observations as an adult. I am sure my son's perceptions are not similar at all and that as an adult I feel this book in a different level. I enjoyed reading the other reviewers that describe their memory of reading this book as children. My experience was different, having read this book for the first time slowly, for several weeks, aloud to my son. My feelings are thus those of a grownup and maybe this makes this book even sadder to me (I do not want to plunge into the discussion of should children know how sad the world is - I have no good answer). In any case this is a marvelous adventure book for all ages whose power stems from many aspects. For me it was mainly the candid descriptions of the narrator, Scotty, who regards himself as a coward and who is moved to great acts of courage by his love to Jonathan, his beautiful, brave and kind brother. The love for Jonathan is really Scotty's driving force. The book really belongs to the canon of best children books ever. On the first level this is an adventure book. The good: a beautiful hero, who always seems to know the right words, a fight for freedom, acts of bravery and self-sacrifice. The evil: a cruel leader, always finding new horrible ways of torture, demonic creatures, treachery and deceit. On the second level this fight for freedom is taking place in a mystical world-beyond who has another world-beyond, a notion that is both scary and comforting (there is always where to go but it seems the problems never end). On yet another level I felt the story works on our deepest fears: death, oppression, darkness, monsters, loneliness and separation from your loved ones which are really the most important aspect of life or of living. I am thinking to myself that maybe the message is that death is better if you stay with your loved ones? is this too horrible to think? The reading therefore can be pleasing, emotional and thought provoking for different ages and is remembered a long while after the reading. .....