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Summary: To get out of this review, start thinking
Review: I greatly enjoyed the critically acclaimed "phantom Tollbooth" due to the incredible character development and strikingly relevant real-life metaphors. the main character, Milo, is displeased with life until a play tollbooth mysteriously arrives at his apartment. This simple, anonymous gift sends him on an adventurous expedition through unknown lands in search of two princesses to literally restore "Rhyme and Reason" to the two kingdoms of number and letters. Norton Juster used amazingly fit dialogue for his nonsense novel, completely disarming you with quotes such as, "Since you got here by not thinking, it seems reasonable to expect that, in order to get out, you must start thinking." i enjoyed all parts of this book specifically "jumping to the island of conclusions, or debating with the giant, the midget, the short, and the fat man, who are all ironically the same average man. I highly recommend this novel of nonsense and useless knowledge to anyone who takes life too seriously.1
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Summary: A favorite since the first read
Review: I remember receiving this book as a gift from my grandmother when I was in third grade. Now I'm in ELEVENTH grade, and it is still my favorite book EVER...and it is a frequent read for me. Every time I read it, I seem to relate to one of the MANY different and well-developed characters: Milo, the boy who desperately looks for something to cure his terrible ennui; Tock, his faithful "watchdog;" the Humbug; the quarrelsome family of Azaz, the Mathemagician, Rhyme, and Reason; Alec; Chroma, the conducter of color; the Soundkeeper; and so many others.The Kingdom of Wisdom in this book takes things that we take for granted in our everyday lives and personifies them, as is the case with Rhyme and Reason, the Isle of Conclusions, and "Point of View." It also provides slanted and comical views of many clichés that we use. For example, when Milo and the others at the "Word Banquet" were forced to "eat their words" and the Demon that makes "mountains out of molehills." It also offers contrasting points of view on sights and sounds. Alec, the boy who "grows down," offers Milo many points of view on life by showing him two towns, Illusion and Reality. Illusion is a beautiful town...at first glance. In actuality, the town is invisible, but the people have not realized that. Another example are sounds. Dr. Dischord and the awful DYNNE find pleasure in horrid, loud sounds (like explosions and screams), while the peaceful Soundkeeper basks in the wonders of silence. Overall, this is a book I recommend to anyone, but especially those who are in their younger years and wish to explore the world, but still want to be entertained. Most of all, THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH offers many poignant quotes that really make one think, such as this one by Rhyme: "And remember that many places you would like to see are just off the map and many things you want to know are just out of sight, but someday you'll reach them all, for what you learn today, for no reason at all, will help you discover all the wonderful secrets of tomorrow." Happy reading!
Rating: 
Summary: Are words your favorite toys?
Review: Ever wonder what it would be like if things were the way we described them? What if a watchdog was a dog whose body was a clock? What if every time you jumped to conclusions you were hurled miles away to an island named Conclusions? The Phantom Tollbooth is a portal to a world where words become real, in the most real sense of the word! If you believe words are delightful playthings, or if you need to escape into a world of "what if..." this book is for you.
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Summary: cOoL
Review: The Phantom ToolBooth is good it is better than good. I gave itfive stars because it is good. I would give it the highest numberthere is but you can only pick 1-5. The Phantom ToolBooth is awierd. It is some where new every chapter if not every threechapters. If I were you I read bye if you get a chance. It is the bestbook. Some of the animals have something in them. Take Tock forexample he's a dog with a clock in him. He's a watch dog. He makessure no one or thing wastes time. They meet animals and people orlearn something new each chapter. Read the book and you'll learn moreabout it.
Rating:
Summary: cOoL
Review: The Phantom ToolBooth is good it is better than good. I gave it five stars because it is good. I would give it the highest number there is but you can only pick 1-5. The Phantom ToolBooth is a wierd. It is some where new every chapter if not every three chapters. If I were you I read bye if you get a chance. It is the best book. Some of the animals have something in them. Take Tock for example he's a dog with a clock in him. He's a watch dog. He makes sure no one or thing wastes time. They meet animals and people or learn something new each chapter. Read the book and you'll learn more about it.
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Summary: What to do with Milo?
Review: Milo is a very bored boy. He discovers on his fantastic adventure the importance of learning, consequences of our choices and actions, enjoying the present and all the world has to offer, and learning from one's mistakes. The vocabulary and word play are rich in this very imaginative and humorous story. Here are two of my favorite quotes from the book: "...Whatever we learn has a purpose and whatever we do affects everything and everyone else, if even in the tiniest way...For whenever you learn something new, the whole world becomes that much richer." And, "...You had the courage to try; and what you can do is often simply a matter of what you will do." This book sat on the shelf for years. My children and I are enriched for finally getting around to experiencing this great read-aloud.
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Summary: Awesome Book!
Review: Phantom Tollbooth Written By Norton Juster Reviewed by Adam Milo is a kid with no opinion about anything. He never likes what he is doing, but sees no point in doing anything else. As he says, "It seems to me that almost everything is a waste of time. There's nothing for me to do, nowhere I'd care to go, and hardly anything worth seeing." One day he receives a strange package containing one genuine tollbooth, one set of instructions, and one road map. Expecting this to be just a dumb activity, Milo puts the tollbooth together and drives through it in a small electric car. He travels through a strange land to a city called Dictionopolis, on the way picking up the Watch dog Tock, who has a watch for a body. Once in Dictionopolis, Milo, Tock, and their newfound friend the watchdog and the Humbug are caught up in a quest to save the princesses Rhyme and Reason and restore order to the world. On the way he meets strange people like the Whether Man ("for after all it's more important to know whether there will be weather than what the weather will be") and Alec Bings who sees the other side of things and is born in the air and grows down to the ground. Milo and his newfound friends Tock the watchdog and the Humbug are caught up in a quest to save the princesses Rhyme and Reason and restore order to the world. Norton Juster does a great job making The Phantom Tollbooth enjoyable and humorous. He combines clever puns and real pieces of literature and math to make an extremely interesting story. " I read [The Phantom Tollbooth] first when I was 10. I still have the book report I wrote, which began 'This is the best book ever.'" --Anna Quindlen, The New York Times "A classic... Humorous, full of warmth and real invention." --The New Yorker I rate this book 10/10 stars.
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Summary: My favorite book of all time!!!!!
Review: Hi. My name is Riley Karp. READ THE BOOK!!! This book is the most imaginative and witty book I have ever read. The Phantom Tollbooth is full of interesting idioms and funny lines. I would supremely recommend this book for all aged readers who want excitement.
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Summary: Best children's book ever
Review: The wisdom, wit, and poignancy of this book are unsurpassed by any adult literature I can think of, and yet the gentle telling of Milo's story (and the winsome drawings by Jules Feiffer) are understandable to a young child. Now that I am a parent I have read many of the "classics" to my own children, and I cannot think of a finer book. Winnie-The-Pooh has some of the same observant elements pointing out common features of human nature, but they are more subtle and further apart in the story. Please buy this book for yourself and your family. You will never forget the wonderful characters, and you will always be grateful for having read it.
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Summary: An absolute classic
Review: I think it's easy to read a book and enjoy it, recommending it to all your friends and feeling slightly envious that they get to experience the joy of discovery you've already enjoyed. But could you call it your FAVORITE book? The absolute, be-all, end-all, definitive book that you like over anything else you've ever read? That's a lot of pressure. For me, it would be hard enough to select which ten books I would want to have with me on a desert island, but there's one book that would fall at the very top of the list, every time, without hesitation -- The Phantom Tollbooth. The Phantom Tollbooth is one of those books that is ageless and eternal, in that anyone, of any age, at any time, could enjoy this book and its clever play on words. Milo is his own everyman, struggling with that problem we've all experienced -- boredom. "There's nothing to do," he says at the beginning of the book, and haven't we all been there, children or adults? It's easy to relate to Milo and the rest of the characters he meets along his journey through Wisdom (especially the ever-patient Tock and the ostensibly annoying Humbug), and even if the story begins to pass into the area of being too clever, it's hard not to smile when Milo encounters the Whether Man, meets the DYNNE, jumps to Conclusions, runs afoul of the Demons of Ignorance, or attempts to return the Princesses of Sweet Rhyme and Pure Reason to the Kingdom of Wisdom. The allegory runs deep throughout the novel, and teaches as it entertains, but it never quite reaches the point where it becomes preachy. Mr. Juster knows exactly when to draw the line to present his readers with the choice of learning over ignorance, and leaves it to those readers to decide for themselves. This is one of those rare novels that possesses the magic to entertain and teach, and should be required reading for anyone who hasn't read it before. (And maybe even for those who haven't read it since they were children.) Read it, enjoy it, and share it with your friends ... it makes a wonderful story to read aloud.
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