Peter Pan and Wendy

One night in the Darling family's nursery in London, a boy called Peter Pan slips through the window. He is looking for his lost shadow. Instead he finds Wendy and her younger brothers John and Michael, and he persuades all three to fly with him to Neverland.

On the island, Peter lives underground with the Lost Boys. The children also meet mermaids, fairies and the jealous Tinker Bell. Wendy takes on the role of mother to the boys, who have never had one.

The pirates are led by the vain Captain Hook, who has held a grudge against Peter for a long time. Their feud keeps the island restless, and the children are caught up in it.

J. M. Barrie adapted this children's fantasy from his own stage play, first performed in 1904, and published the novel in 1911. Some depictions, notably of the Native American characters, reflect the attitudes of their time and read as dated and stereotyped today.

The adventure has a bittersweet edge, and it dwells on memory, motherhood and the loss of childhood as much as on flying and pirates. The question the story turns on is whether the children will stay in Neverland or go home.