The Power of Words

The Phantom Tollbooth

by Norton Juster

Summary

A boy named Milo who isn’t really interested in anything, and “regarded the process of seeking knowledge as the greatest waste of time of all,” comes home from school one day to discover a box in his bedroom. “One genuine turnpike tollbooth,” states the enclosed letter. Having nothing better to do, Milo puts together the tollbooth, hops in the accompanying car, and suddenly finds himself in a new country, his room and home having vanished completely.

As he heads toward the city of Dictionopolis, Milo begins encountering many odd and unusual people and situations. He passes through Expectations, gets stuck in the Doldrums, and meets up with the watchdog Tock, who becomes his traveling companion. The entire story continues in this vein, and Milo discovers people and places representing a myriad of thoughts, ideas and expressions. As Milo travels along, meets new people and hears new things, he begins to learn, and to see the value in words and numbers, the danger of jumping to conclusions, and the frightening prospect of what ignorance can lead to.

Worth staying up past bedtime?

The Phantom Tollbooth was a great book for me to stay up past bedtime with, but I wonder how well children would understand and appreciate the subtle (and sometimes not-so-subtle) messages it conveys. I think it is a book that would be fun to read as a kid, and then equally enjoyable to return to later, because many of the figures of speech and word plays would be more understandable at an older age.

Overall, I loved the message of the book, and the amount of creativity that Juster used to tell the story. In our modern world of technical gadgets, constant communication, and instant gratification, I think it is more important than ever to remind children of the importance of words, numbers, and consideration of how we use our time and knowledge.

Reviews

"A classic... Humorous, full of warmth and real invention." -The New Yorker

In the library

Create your own word market like the one Milo visits in Dictionopolis. Set up tables with baskets full of words and have children visit them and pick out words they like or want to learn. Write the word on one side of the paper and the definition on the back. Encourage them to use the word in conversation sometime during the day.

SLIS 5420

Module 8

Week of Oct. 18-24