Hughes, Ted

AVERAGE REVIEW SCORE:

3 out of 5

(1 book)

The Iron Man

Not to be confused with the Marvel superhero (or the Black Sabbath song, for that matter), this is the story of a metal giant who appears atop a cliff one day.  Initially feared by the locals, the Iron Man becomes the saviour of the Earth when it is threatened by a gigantic monster from the depths of space.

Now, I'm certain that this book is crammed with allegory and you'll be able to find any number of essays explaining how the Iron Man represents the modern world or the space-bat-angel-dragon is a metaphor for consumerism (or perhaps you were made to write one yourself in school), but I have no interest in exploring any of that here.  I'm not averse to a little allegory, but I read this book purely in the spirit that it was published, as a whimsical fable intended for children.

And as a whimsical fable it serves perfectly well, with each chapter taking the story of the mysterious Iron Man in a new direction.  For me the early chapters were by the far the best in which the Iron Man suddenly appears and begins to explore our world.  There's a lovely sense of both mystery and wonder to this part of the book.  On the other hand, the space-bat-angel-dragon is just pure bonkers.

(Yes, this was loosely adapted into 'The Iron Giant' and no, I haven't seen it to make any comparisons)

3 out of 5

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