The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

First published: 1961; illustrated

Type of work: Fantasy

Themes: Education

Time of work: The late twentieth century

Recommended Ages: 10-13

Locale: The mythical Kingdom of Wisdom

Principal Characters:

• Milo, a schoolboy who never knows what to do with himself and thinks learning is dull
• Tock, a large dog with a clock in the middle of his body, who accompanies Milo on his journey
• King Azaz, the ruler of Dictionopolis, who believes words are more important than numbers
• The Mathemagician, the ruler of Digitopolis, who believes numbers are more important than words

The Story

The Phantom Tollbooth is a witty fable about escaping boredom and finding pleasure in learning. It is an allegorical fantasy, rich in wordplay and humor and full of adventure and magic. Milo is a boy who is generally bored by everything around him until, one day, he returns home from school to find a large, mysterious box containing a tollbooth, maps, and directions for its use. Curious, he drives his toy car through the tollbooth toward the city of Dictionopolis. Along the way, he meets an assortment of characters, among them Tock, a large dog with a clock in the middle of his body, who explains his role as a watchdog to keep people from killing time. Tock accompanies Milo on the journey and proves to be an invaluable friend.

In the Kingdom of Dictionopolis, words are vital to everyday life, and the economy is based on the buying and selling of letters and words. Amidst the general confusion in the word marketplace, Milo meets the Spelling Bee (a large bee who spells as he speaks) and a dashingly dressed beetle, the Humbug. An argument breaks out when the Humbug taunts the Spelling Bee, and, in the ensuing commotion, all the word stalls are knocked over, and the words and letters sent crashing to the ground. Milo wonders at all the trouble caused by confusing words when he is arrested for the trouble and sent to prison. There, he hears the story of the feud in the Kingdom of Wisdom between King Azaz of Dictionopolis and the Mathemagician of Digitopolis. The two brothers have always disagreed over which is more important words or numbers. They had asked their stepsisters, the Princesses Rhyme and Reason, to settle their dispute, but when the princesses wisely decreed that words and numbers were equally important, they were banished to the Castle in the Air.

The real adventure begins for Milo and Tock when they suggest to the unhappy King Azaz a plan to rescue the princesses and thereby restore order and happiness to the Kingdom of Wisdom. The king agrees to their plan on the condition that they first secure the permission of his brother in Digitopolis and sends the Humbug along as their guide. Traveling to Digitopolis provides further unusual experiences for Milo, who is beginning to realize how exciting it is to learn new things and meet new challenges. When the travelers arrive in Digitopolis, they are taken to the number mines where the Mathemagician and the workers mine and prepare all the numbers anyone in the kingdom could ever need. Once again, Milo is overwhelmed by how little he knows about mathematics, and turns to the Mathemagician for answers and explanations. He learns that understanding mathematics, like anything else, requires perseverance.

Milo presents his plan to rescue the princesses, but when the Mathemagician is reluctant to agree to any scheme his brother condones, Milo uses logic to trick him into giving his approval and sets out for the Mountains of Ignorance. The demons that dwell there are the embodiments of familiar distractions; each is successfully eluded with the help of the gifts Milo has been given along the way. The Princesses Rhyme and Reason greet their rescuers at the gates to the Castle in the Air. Together, they make an exciting escape, past the demons, to the bottom of the mountains, where they are met by the unified armies of the Kingdom of Wisdom. The demons are sent fleeing into the darkest corners of the kingdom, and the princesses and their rescuers are given a grand parade and celebration.

Milo returns to his own room through the magical tollbooth. The next day, in its place, Milo finds a note explaining that the tollbooth is needed for other children. Milo, however, is not disappointed, because there are so many things for him to do and learn all around him.

Context

The Phantom Tollbooth is Norton Juster’s first and best-known book for children. The book was hailed as one of the most important children’s books to be published in some time, and adults as well as children found it refreshing for its wit and lighthearted moral purpose. Juster’s interest in wordplay and multilayered meanings is essential to all of his books. In The Dot and the Line: A Romance in Lower Mathematics (1963), Juster tells another witty fable, this time about a pragmatic straight line that falls in love with a whimsical dot. In the more recent As: A Surfeit of Similes (1989), Juster provides many examples of the mode of comparison called simile using a clever, rhyming text. In The Phantom Tollbooth, Juster avoids a heavyhanded moral tone by filling the story with droll and fast-talking characters, silly puns, and ingenious plot twists.

Critics have noted the similarities of The Phantom Tollbooth to other American fairy tales and fantasies. James Thurber’s The Thirteen Clocks (1950) is a modern fairy tale full of puns and plays on words, but it presents a more cynical attitude toward the American experience. In both works, however, there is an awareness of the difficulty in securing happiness in even the most affluent society. The American classic The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900), by L. Frank Baum, has a similar attitude to that of Juster’s story. In Baum’s fantasy, Dorothy is not searching for material wealth. She and her companions are seeking attributes they lack—courage, compassion, and knowledge—or simply a way home. Like Milo, the Scarecrow is told that he is learning something new every day and that only experience brings knowledge.

The Phantom Tollbooth has also been compared to the works of Lewis Carroll. Like Alice in Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865), Milo encounters an eccentric world through his own rabbit hole, a magical tollbooth. While both characters find themselves at the center of a series of peculiar events, their abilities to cope with their disturbing surroundings are quite different. Alice responds with an educated logic and common sense to familiar though distorted facts; Milo finds that he knows very few facts at all.

The Phantom Tollbooth has a lasting place in the genre of American fantasy. Its hero is an ordinary boy who has an extraordinary adventure, from which he learns that he has much to learn but will enjoy the process. Juster has surpassed the straightforward moral tale by providing Milo’s quest with delightful characters, amusing events, and witty dialogue. The Phantom Tollbooth has a fresh answer to the question of boredom.