WENDY

What was Wendy Darling’s life like before the coming of Peter Pan? In this twisted but ultimately comforting retelling, the Darling children live in a horrific web of Victorian hypocrisy. Mother is distracted, Nanny is a child-hating sadist, and Father is a drunken social climber who is carrying on an affair with vicious Lady Cunningham. Wendy tries—with varying success—to protect her brothers from the harshest realities of their lives. Her only comfort is the family’s annual visit to her uncle’s home, where she can see her dear friend Thomas. Thomas is a childlike carpenter’s son, a mentally disabled artist who is the focus of Wendy’s affection and mothering. When Wendy, already disillusioned with her philandering father, witnesses Thomas in her mother’s arms, she’s overwhelmed with bitterness. The poignancy of Wendy’s coming-of-age is somewhat marred by too many narrative viewpoints. This tale’s not stellar as a stand-alone, but deftly exposes the incestuous darkness that underlies Barrie’s original. (Fiction. 12-14)