Tiger Lily

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Rating: 4.5~5 stars

Peter Pan had always been one of my favourite childhood stories, a tale which I grew up with. I remember when my mum used to read to me from the book, and then when I got older I read the real/original version of the book myself. I also remember when my uncle bought the Peter Pan Disney movies for me and I grabbed them and ran to watch them straight away. I've also watched the real-life movies, but still liked the book and the not-so-real version of the tale better. Jodi Lynn Anderson did a brilliant job at retelling this story with Tiger Lily as the main character. She understood the original tale and slotted in her own colours into this already wonderful picture. This book was actually told in Tinker Bell's perspective, and I found that even more intriguing than reading in Tiger Lily's view.

The characters in this book were very different from who they were or how they were in the original tale. They were still the same characters, and you know them for who they were through allusions to the original story, but they had all been altered greatly. Peter was not like Peter, Tiger Lily was not who she seemed, Tinker Bell was completely different, Wendy was protrayed from an angle I never thought of and even Captain Hook took on a whole new identity.

Though they were all altered in some way and had a slightly different role, they stayed true to the original tale. Jodi Lynn Anderson breathed life to the characters and offered insights to them that are rare in Young Adult books (or even retellings). 

I didn't like Peter Pan as much in Tiger Lily. In the original book, he was my favourite character. In here however, he seemed less brave and fearless, more unsure of himself and more self-centered. The author depicted him as a very realistic character and fitted very well under her picture. But I thought his very different role and personality lost a little of his flare.

I admired Tiger Lily very much in this book. She was as a heroine should be: fearless, strong, unbending and quiet. She was not a smart mouth or a cry baby. She refused to show weakness. When she was pushed into a corner and bullied, she stood up straight and protected herself. She could do anything if she put her mind to it. But I thought that not showing weakness was also one of the flaws in her personality. Sometimes you have to bend and let go for once. She was too uptight and didn't know how to show her love or totally relax.

Captain Hook was someone whom I could feel sorry for in this book. There was a whole sympathetic background story for him and Jodi Lynn Anderson put him under a distinct light. I couldn't hate him in this book and felt his warring emotions.

Tinker Bell was a very reliable narrator. She wasn't the selfish and annoying fairy protrayed in the original Peter Pan. She was mature and loyal and had reasons for everything she did. Being small and not easily detected, she could travel to and hide in places and see everthing that goes on in the human world. She was very lovable and thoughful. I liked Tink a lot more after reading Tiger Lily.

The plot was innovative and unpredictable. It captured my attention right from page one and held me until the very last word. It's not a very easy task to do, yet after finishing the book, I still wanted more of it. It proved how good the plot and writing collabrated together and were both of a very exceptional level. There were a great many new characters introduced into this story. They enhanced the originality yet made me connect with the old tale more. Each character was unique and well described. I could imagine all of them while reading and got to know their personalities very well by the end of the book.

However, the ending was bitter sweet. Surprisingly, I wasn't disappointed by the bitter bits (as you know I love happy endings). In contrary, it provided a rare realism to the story, not just one of those empty sloppy teenage romances which made the impossible/unimaginable possible. It taught the reader a life lesson and to see the sweet things in life, though life won't always be in your favour.

I loved the way the author twisted the fairytale completely, added her own imagination and her twinkle of magic, yet still allowed the original story peak through at places. Thank you Jodi, for such a truthful and beautiful story. It's definitely a book I would recommend.

Synopsis

Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair. . . .

Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn't believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell.

Peter is unlike anyone she's ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland's inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything--her family, her future--to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she's always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter.

With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it's the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who's everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.From the "New York Times" bestselling author of "Peaches" comes a magical and bewitching story of the romance between a fearless heroine and the boy who wouldn't grow up.