Review: Mister Max: The Book of Lost Things by Cynthia Voigt

Review: 

If you grew up in the eighties and nineties, you probably came across a Cynthia Voigt book or five in your school library. I even remember having Homecoming read to me in sixth grade – a book about the astonishing Tillerman family, four kids (the oldest one was just eleven), who, after being abandoned in a parking lot, have to figure out a way to stay together and fend for themselves with nowhere to go and nothing to eat. 

The Book of Lost Things is similar in that Max is thrown into just as implausible a situation and left to fend for himself. Max is a twelve year old from a theatrical family at the turn of the century. His parents, William and Mary Starling, own a theatre company in an unnamed town in England. They’re what you expect of a theatrical family – dramatic about everything – and Max has spent his entire childhood watching and learning from them, helping out in the theatre, and living out some fun, crazy adventures.

When William and Mary get a mysterious letter inviting them to India, they quickly decide to close their theatre and take Max to learn something new. But disaster strikes, the Starlings leave without Max, and their parting becomes sinister. Max must learn to deal with their absence, follow the clues left to him to try to find them, while learning to be independent.

The Book of Lost Things feels somewhat similar to an Encyclopedia Brown book, in that Max becomes a sort of detective in order to survive. But it’s also structured with short chapters that are called “acts” within the individual mysteries. And between that, you have the overarching mystery of Max’s parents and Max himself trying to learn how to be. The structure is pretty great, and adds a lot to the book.

There is a cast of characters wide and hilarious. There’s the brilliant, if a little too bossy Grammie, Max’s grandmother, the pastry shop protege with a wonderful knack for baking and a broken heart, the local “richest woman on earth” who secretly has a decent heart, the frazzled, single-minded painter…the list goes on. While I enjoyed these characters, they did feel a touch one-dimensional to me – characters that served a purpose to get the hero on his way.

That said, it’s hard to argue with the way that Voigt wrote this middle-grade historical, because this is a book about Max, and to be in the headspace of Max is quite a delight. Voigt’s writing is precise, deftly and magically guiding you through Max’s very realistic thoughts and feelings while adding excitement and fun to his adventures in learning to be independent.

Reading Mister Max now, almost two decades after I first picked up Voigt’s Dicey books things really stood out to me as Voigt characteristics: 1) quirky, smart-ass grandmothers are totally her thing 2) she loves to create young people who are fiercely independent 3) she is fascinated by family – both blood relations and the family that you create around you.

Bonuses: 

From the beginning of the book – (c) Iacopo Bruno

The Final Word

If you’re a fan of Voigt’s books, you will probably be delighted with The Book of Lost Things, a book that feels to me like a cross between Homecoming and On Fortune’s Wheel, with a big daub of Encyclopedia Brown. As an adult, Mister Max’s adventures feel a touch predictable, but the charm and delight of the tale still prevail and capture the magic of finding things – and finding things out about people, and yourself.

Are you a fan of Cynthia Voigt? Will you be picking up THE BOOK OF LOST THINGS? Do you like books with mysteries? How about books about acting and art? How do you feel about books with illustrations? Sound off in the comments!