Ecc 1:1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.Ecc 1:2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity.
Ecc 1:3 What profit hath a man of all his labour which he taketh under the sun?
Ecc 1:4 One generation passeth away, and another generation cometh: but the earth abideth forever.
Ecc 1:5 The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.
Ecc 1:6 The wind goeth toward the south, and turneth about unto the north; it whirleth about continually, and the wind returneth again according to his circuits.
Ecc 1:7 All the rivers run into the sea; yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, thither they return again.
Ecc 1:8 All things are full of labour; man cannot utter it: the eye is not satisfied with seeing, nor the ear filled with hearing.
The main character in The Phantom Tollbooth seems to have been reading a bit too much of the book of Ecclesiastes. A great book, but not meant to be read alone or on a rainy day. Milo, our hero, spends his days in a grey fog. Nothing seems worth doing…
When he was in school he longed to be out, when he was out he longed to be in. On the way he thought about coming home, and coming home he thought about going. Wherever he was, he wished he was somewhere else, and when he got there he wondered why he bothered. Nothing really interested him–least of all the things that should have.”
Then enters into his life a mysterious package with a mysterious tollbooth… and an adventure into a new world. A world of words and numbers, a short policeman, and a watchdog named ‘Tock’.
This book is a marvelous book to read to your children. Marvelous because they will love the story, and you will love the book. And marvelous because practically every page presents a teaching opportunity… about words, numbers, and life.
With almost 5 million copies sold 60 years after its original publication, generations of readers have now journeyed with Milo to the Lands Beyond in this beloved classic. Enriched by Jules Feiffer’s splendid illustrations, the wit, wisdom, and wordplay of Norton Juster’s offbeat fantasy are as beguiling as ever.
“Comes up bright and new every time I read it . . . it will continue to charm and delight for a very long time yet. And teach us some wisdom, too.” –Phillip Pullman
For Milo, everything’s a bore. When a tollbooth mysteriously appears in his room, he drives through only because he’s got nothing better to do. But on the other side, things seem different. Milo visits the Island of Conclusions (you get there by jumping), learns about time from a ticking watchdog named Tock, and even embarks on a quest to rescue Rhyme and Reason. Somewhere along the way, Milo realizes something astonishing. Life is far from dull. In fact, it’s exciting beyond his wildest dreams!
I like how the world is out of control without Rhyme and Reason
I recently (re)read this book and loved it! The wordplay, the satire, the themes — not just a book we would like to read, but a book we SHOULD read!