The Pagemaster Author:David Kirschner, Ernie Contreras, Jerry Tiritilli (Illustrator) The adventures of the obsessively fearful Richard begin when he reluctantly ventures out on his bike, even though "most traffic accidents happen within three blocks of the home." In the library, he bumps his head and finds that he must travel across a fantasy landscape teeming with characters from fiction -- Moby Dick, Dr. Jekyll, Long... more » John Silver, Thumbelina -- to reach the exit.
Three personified books -- the piratical but cowardly Adventure, schoolmarmish Fantasy and ugly, eager-to-please Horror -- accompany him on his pseudo-epic journey. At the end he must confront a dragon (and his fears) on his own.
As he pedals home, the change in his personality is both considerable and hard to credit.
This story of a timid child, who finds courage in a series of adventures with characters from books, is delightful. It could be used to introduce the concept of genres and to present the idea of "classics" and cultural literacy.