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Being a child at heart and enjoying the simple pleasures of Disney films while growing up, I chose to read Jodi Lynn Anderson’s Tiger Lily. With something as magical as Disney’s Peter Pan, I got the impression I would be reading something as happy and joyful as the film. Finishing the novel feeling melancholic and without hope, it completely changed the story of the Peter Pan and Neverland I knew of.
Anderson’s lovely dedication page was hint enough how special this novel was going to be as it read, “For the girls with messy hair and thirsty hearts.”
Tiger Lily is about the unknown story of what happened before and after Wendy Darling arrived to Neverland. Through this novel you absorb and learn more of the hardly ever talked about Tiger Lily that is seen through the observant eyes of Tinker Bell, who follows her everywhere. Tinker Bell respects Tiger Lily for her strong and unique spirit. She really is an amazing character that you can’t blame Tinker Bell for admiring.
You see that despite Tiger Lily’s tribe’s traditions, she tries her best to escape them. Instead of accepting the inevitable, she does her best to delay them. You learn that avoiding the creeping responsibilities of adulthood will always catch up on everyone, even those who live on the magical and treasured island of Neverland. Eventually, she acquaints herself with Peter along with the Lost Boys. With their developing friendship and not so surprising romance, I couldn’t help but fall as equally in love with Peter as Tiger Lily did.
Anderson's writing is beautiful, a downright product of what magic would feel like. This novel has you hoping for an ending you know will never come. Tiger Lily is a bright and an emotional touching book with a bittersweet ending. This book is amazing and soon hold a special spot on my bookshelf (and heart).
