The Wendy Project: Coping with Tragedy through a Trip to Neverland

I really love stories that take classic tales and modernize them or adapt them in unique and interesting ways. For example, one of my favorite takes on Macbeth is a film called Scotland, PA where the backdrop is a hamburger stand in the 70s that gets taken over by Joe McBeth and his wife after they murder the owner, a guy named Duncan. It’s better than I am making it sound here, trust me.

This type of creativity and tribute to classic characters and texts is something I enjoy. This is certainly true of The Wendy Project, a new book published by Papercutz’ Super Genius imprint. Written by Melissa Jane Osborne and illustrated by Veronica Fish, the book follows the tragic events of Wendy Davies who crashes her car and seemingly kills her youngest brother Michael. The thing is, she and her other brother John swear that they saw him fly away with a mysterious figure, leaving them behind.

​The story mixes fantasy with brutal reality as Wendy tries to convince those around her that her brother isn’t actually dead but in some other place – Neverland. This stark and emotionally candid account is peppered with iconic imagery and actual quotes from J.M. Barrie’s classic play and novel, Peter Pan, which challenges readers to discern for themselves what is real and what is psychological in Wendy's journey.

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Osborne expertly uses the iconography and mythology of Peter Pan as an opportunity to confront adolescent loss and grief. Wendy’s journey is magical and psychological. She wants to find Neverland, and she does, but the journey isn’t just about getting there literally but she needs to arrive emotionally and that is where this book really shines. The events push Wendy to accept the tragedy in her life and allow herself to not just grieve, but also relinquish her guilt for what has happened.
 
I tell you, it’s pretty amazing.
 
Veronica Fish’s art is also something to crow about (see what I did there?) because it is every bit as wonderful and engaging as the story. Her deliberate and frugal use of color indicates the presence of magic, and hope. It’s brilliant, as are her panel structures, choices of perspective, and character designs. The artistic diversity here draws us further into Wendy’s psyche and allows us to believe, as she does, that Neverland is a real place in the universe of the novel.

​As a teacher, this could be used in a lot of ways. First, the hero’s journey is an obvious connection. Certainly pairing this with Peter Pan is also a no-brainer. In addition, I would put this in a graphic novel unit with I Kill Giants as the collision of the real and the supernatural in both books make for great romantic versus rationalistic literary criticism debates.

For my part, though, I think this would be a powerful text to teach in the wake of a local or national tragedy as its theme of loss and acceptance through the eyes of a broken teenage girl is well told and would give any classroom a lot to talk and write about.

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This book belongs on every middle and high school teacher's bookshelf. I can see myself putting this into the hands of any student who is struggling to find him or herself in the wake of a tragic personal event. We all know that life goes on, but sometimes it just has to stop for a while and kids (and the grown-ups around them) need to know that's okay.

The Wendy Project is available now. ISBN9781629917696. Get it.
 
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