It seems to me that almost everything is a waste of time, Milo laments. [T]heres nothing for me to do, nowhere Id care to go, and hardly anything worth seeing. This bored, bored young protagonist who cant see the point to anything is knocked out of his glum humdrum by the sudden and curious appearance of a tollbooth in his bedroom. Since Milo has absolutely nothing better to do, he dusts off his toy car, pays the toll, and drives through. What ensues is a journey of mythic proportions, during which Milo encounters countless odd characters who are anything but dull.
Norton Juster received (and continues to receive) enormous praise for this original, witty, and oftentimes hilarious novel, first published in 1961. In an introductory Appreciation written by Maurice Sendak for the 35th anniversary edition, he states, The Phantom Tollbooth leaps, soars, and abounds in right notes all over the place, as any proper masterpiece must. Indeed.
As Milo heads toward Dictionopolis he meets with the Whether Man (for after all its more important to know whether there will be weather than what the weather will be), passes through The Doldrums (populated by Lethargarians), and picks up a watchdog named Tock (who has a giant alarm clock for a body). The brilliant satire and double entendre intensifies in the Word Market, where after a brief scuffle with Officer Short Shrift, Milo and Tock set off toward the Mountains of Ignorance to rescue the twin Princesses, Rhyme and Reason. Anyone with an appreciation for language, irony, or Alice in Wonderland-style adventure will adore this book for years on end. (Ages 8 and up)
Wheres My Tollbooth?
I didnt know what to expect when picking up The Phantom Tollbooth.
Sure, I had read it and loved it when I was younger. And the names Milo and Tock seemed vaguely familiar to me. But reading it again begged the question: Would I love it again?
The answer? Hell yes.
The premise of The Phantom Tollbooth is that a young boy, Milo, is too busy going places and doing things to live life. When the Tollbooth mysteriously arrives in his bedroom, he hops in his car and soon finds himself on a deserted road in the Kingdom of Wisdom. He soon meets Tock, a watchdog who ticks, the Humbug who is usually mistaken, and a cast of characters that are like no other. When discovering the lands make no sense without Rhyme and Reason, the princesses who have been banished, he undertakes a mission to save the kingdom of Wisdom.
Without being overtly educational, the book strives to highlight all the things we humans are too busy doing to acknowledge. Milo journeys through the lands of Digitopolis (ruled by the Mathemagician), Dictionopolis (ruled by the Mathemagicians brother, King Azaz), the Mountains of Ignorance, the Island of Conclusions, the Valley of Sound, and the Forest of Sight to save the Princesses. Each land has a corresponding character (or several) that emphasize the importance of appreciating the world around Milo, and indirectly, the reader.
I was quite impressed with the cleverness of Norton Juster, as he managed to create so many characters that epitomized their individual lands and lessons. Chroma resides within the Forest of Sight where he conducts a colorful symphony daily that teach Milo just how amazing the world can be when displayed in technicolor. Chromas rendition of the world is played out on a daily basis by his orchestra, which Milo soon finds out is much more complicated than it seems. Later, when Milo arrives in the Valley of Sound, he learns the Soundkeeper has forbidden any sort of noise, wanting to teach the residents the importance of silence. Yet a withheld But on the tip of Milos tongue restores sound to the Valley, and reminds Milo of the beauty of noise. Likewise, Juster plays upon conventional wit by having Milo, Tock, and the Humbug absconded to the Island of Conclusions when they make an assumption that proves to be incorrect.
What I loved most about The Phantom Tollbooth is that these were characters I wanted to befriend, to spend a day with, to learn from. Yet in a way, we all have. Weve all dealt with the Terrible Trivium, demon of petty tasks and worthless jobs, ogre of wasted effort, and monster of habit. Similarly, weve all dealt with the Senses Taker – anyone whos ever worked in retail knows exactly what I mean. At the same time, weve been comforted by Rhyme and Reason, who in this book are anthropomorphized by the two banished Princesses. Justers ability to take a fictional world and translate it so closely to a world that we all live in and sometimes forget to appreciate is what makes the Phantom Tollbooth such a successful modern fairy tale.
Though it is meant to be a childrens book, there are lessons every child and adult can learn and relearn, while enjoying the fabulous whimsy of The Phantom Tollbooth. Now, to figure out how to get my own Tollbooth, so I can go hang out with Tock…
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The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
