Fell Flat: The Boy Who Climbed Into the Moon

David Almond has written some amazing children's books, but I don't think The Boy Who Climbed into the Moon (See all Children's Humorous Literature) is one of them.  The slow development of Paul, the shy basement boy who learns to speak his mind and have adventures never gets traction, while the quirky people he stumbles into keep trying too hard to showcase their quirks.  Finally, the anti-war message stomps about in big jackboots, shouting out that "sausages are better than war."  I mean, beef, pork, or tofu sausages?

Polly Dunbar illustrated my edition, but mostly her cheerful pictures pulled the writing down; the art aimed at goofy but the text seemed more focused on quaint, and the dichotomy kept nagging at me.  Even the final sequence when the boy climbs into the moon seemed forced.  Maybe I'm just suffering from too much sleep deprivation so I never embraced the zany, but this one fell flat for me.  Too bad; I was expecting to love it.