2015, 2015 Reviews, Books, Disney, Geeky, Hardcover

The Land of Tomorrow and Yesterday: A Review of Before Tomorrowland

AR_BeforeTomorrowland

Long time readers of the blog know that I  am a bit of a Disney geek. I’m also a fan of George Clooney (except not Gravity –but there are reasons for that, that might make me sound even weirder if I go into that). So when I heard about the upcoming film Tomorrowland, I was so happy—but I nearly hit the roof with the happiness when I heard George Clooney was in it. When I found out about Jeff Jenson, Jonathan Case, Brad Bird and Damon Lindelof working together on a prequel book, I am pretty sure people all across Southern California heard me squee!

1939 is a year of much change in America, and the best minds of the century (and the last) combine their ideas to try and steer the world into a Utopian society, while an adolescent brain trapped in a robot body seeks to destroy it all with a bomb. As a mother and her teen son make their way to a science fiction convention in New York, there are more sinister ploys from a third reich-era doctor who seeks the utopian-makers and the robot. When all of these strong personalities converge, the only question is, will New York survive?

Before Tomorrowland transports readers into the world of 1939, both emotionally and physically. The book has a very Enid Blyton feel, with the stylization of the chapters (and some of the line drawings and sketches). This feels like a book that my parents or grandparents would have discovered, which made the whole story (inside AND out), have a cohesion that I haven’t seen for a very long time. Not to mention, every copy includes the comic that plays such a big role in the novel (sadly, the glasses are not there).

I loved the characters and the story equally; it is great to have an established land and characters, without having the story of the movie being given away. Rather than tell you whom my favorite character may be, I will say that there were a plethora of historical figures as characters in the novel. And I loved each and every one of them. I have a feeling I might know which character will show up in the movie (as a certain Pop! vinyl in the picture above, but I don’t know for sure. I cannot wait until the end of this month to see Tomorrowland.

Although this is a young adult novel, I recommend this book for young adults, and old—and the young at heart (much like Disneyland). I think it would be a great gift for someone either interested in the movie or someone whom might have enjoyed reading Enid Blyton books as a child.

Before Tomorrowland is available in hardcover, and I recommend snagging yours at your favorite book seller like I did!

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