Pan's Labyrinth

Starred review from May 1, 2019

Gr 6-9-Master storyteller Funke and critically acclaimed director del Toro have woven a tale of greed, bravery, and sacrifice inspired by the Oscar-winning film. In 1944, 13-year-old Ofelia and her pregnant mother, Carmen, have come to live with her mother's new husband in a forest north of Spain. Ofelia is afraid of her new stepfather, whom she has nicknamed "The Wolf." She worries that he will hurt her mother. When they have almost reached her new home, she encounters a small twiglike creature that she knows immediately is actually a fairy. Ofelia is correct, as the strange fairy returns later on. She follows it through the forest, where she meets a half-man, half-goat creature, the Faun. He tells her that she is the reincarnation of an Underworld princess but her memories were erased by the sun. Ofelia's true father, the king of the Underworld, has left portals open all over the word so she can return to him. It has been so long since she left, there is only one portal still open. Ofelia must pass a series of tests before she is allowed to return to the Underworld. Readers will easily relate to Ofelia's fears and applaud her bravery. Imaginative vignettes and black-and-white illustrations add depth to the narrative. Hand to fans of the movie, but also expect to engender new devotees with such captivating lore. VERDICT Reminiscent of C.S. Lewis's "Chronicles of Narnia" series and Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, this creatively cryptic tale will enchant readers who delight in fantasy.-Julie Shatterly, W. A. Bess Elementary School, Gastonia, NC

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2019
A young girl is swept into the dangerous world of fairies and magic in war-torn Spain in a collaborative tale inspired by the noted film. With the death of her father, her mother's marriage to a stoic military captain, and the imminent arrival of a baby brother, 13-year-old Ofelia's world has been turned upside down. But once upturned, Ofelia discovers a world beneath her own that seems straight out of her favorite fairy tales--an Underground Kingdom with magic, fairies, and a faun whose princess has been missing for centuries. The faun explains that Ofelia is their princess reincarnated, but to return to her throne, she must complete three tasks before the next full moon. But as her mother's health rapidly declines and the captain's cruelty spreads like a deadly fume, a giant toad and grotesque child eater aren't the only monsters Ofelia must face. Charged with the monumental task of adapting an intricate film to the page, del Toro (The Shape of Water, 2018, etc.) and Funke (The Griffin's Feather, 2018, etc.) have avoided merely describing the film and instead have elegantly recrafted the narrative. Brief, interspersed tales that stitch together several characters' backstories deepen and add greater complexity to the plot while also shrinking the original story's ambiguous gap between fantasy and reality. Spot art based on the film's concept art accompanies each of the tales, helping to both offset and connect them. Dark and mesmerizing. (Dark fantasy. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

June 24, 2019
In this dark fantasy, Funke (the Inkheart trilogy) revisits Pan’s Labyrinth, del Toro’s acclaimed 2006 film in which a girl undergoes a series of fairy tale–inspired tasks set against the backdrop of 1944 Spain. Ofelia, 13, must adjust to her new surroundings after she and her pregnant mother move to the north of Spain to live with her new stepfather, the evil Capitan Vidal, who is obsessed with hunting down local resistance fighters. Then, the mysterious Faun visits Ofelia and informs her that she is the long-missing daughter of the Underworld’s king. In order to return home, she must prove her worth by completing three tasks. The film’s storyline interwove Ofelia’s challenges in a mythical labyrinth with scenes in the real world, and Funke’s expansion reveals further backstory through a series of fairy tale vignettes touching upon relevant people, items, and themes, including the enigmatic Faun who sets everything in motion and Capitan Vidal’s prized razor. Fans of the film will enjoy this in-depth exploration and reimagining of the source material, while newcomers will have no trouble getting into the story, though its dark themes and occasional gruesome scenes aren’t for the faint-hearted. Ages 14–up.

May 1, 2019
Grades 6-10 Del Toro's Oscar-winning film Pan's Labyrinth is a natural pick for novelization, steeped as it is in books and storytelling. But perhaps novelization is too limiting a word, for Funke beautifully expands the story's mythologies and deftly transposes Del Toro's highly visual world to the page. It is the story of Ofelia, who is en route with her heavily pregnant mother to meet her new stepfather, a brutal military captain. In 1944 Spain, Capitan Vidal is charged with ousting rebels from the woods surrounding the old mill that is now Ofelia's home. The violence of war intermingles with the magic and darkness of fairy tales as bookish Ofelia enters an old labyrinth, where a faun recognizes her as the lost princess of an enchanted, underground kingdom?to which she can return if she completes three tasks. Funke maintains the tale's dark beauty, filling it with imaginative details, complex characters, love, and history, as well as humanity's evils. With pages hauntingly framed in trees and gorgeous full-page illustrations, this book will creep into the minds and hearts of readers and linger there.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Expansive fan bases will collide with this collaboration and likely spawn another best-seller for Del Toro and Funke.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)