The Iron Man: A Story in Five Nights

by Ted Hughes

illustrated by Andrew Davidson

(London: Faber Children’s Books, 2005)

Paperback, 81 Pages, Children’s

ISBN: 9780571226122, US$5.50

ABCD Rating: BACKLIST

From the Cover: A mysterious creature stalks the land, eating barbed wire and devouring tractors and plows. The farmers are mystified—and afraid. And then they glimpse him in the night: the Iron Man, taller than a house, with glowing headlight eyes and an insatiable taste for metal. The hungry giant must be stopped, at any cost. Only a young boy named Hogarth is brave enough to lead the Iron Man to a safe home. And only Hogarth knows where to turn when the earth needs a hero—a giant hero—as never before...

My Review: Just as with Hellboy, I recently introduced my son and daughter to the brilliant Brad Bird film The Iron Giant. They instantly fell head-over-heels in love with the film, and as I was watching it with them, I noticed that it said on the credits that it was based on the book by Ted Hughes. (Yes, that Ted Hughes … the Ted Hughes who was married to Sylvia Plath.) Well, imagine my surprise that this wonderful film was based on a book … and, being who I am, I needed to get my hands on that book. Luckily, our local library had a copy and it was in!

I picked it up thinking it would make a great bedtime story for my kids (since, after all, they loved the film) but that fell flat, mostly because it’s a book that is a little above the heads of a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old. (If pressed, I would say that the target age for this book is six and up.) As for me, though, I loved the book. It is a delightful little story, full of fantasy and whimsy … just what you’d expect from a children’s book … and yet it is more than just a children’s story. There are elements of the fairy tale in Hughes’ story—the lonely child, the magical friend/guardian, the … dragon—and there are elements of science fiction (science fiction, though of the Ray Bradbury kind, not the Isaac Asimov or Arthur C. Clarke … Hughes never explains his Iron Man, he just is), and in the end it is a story of friendship and heroism.

I won’t recommend the book unreservedly. This is not a “One-Size-Fits-All-Children’s-Book” and so it is not for every child … I would say ages six and up (or a very advanced five) and those who have the patience to sit through a book that can be slow at times. Also, if your child is expecting the same adventure as in Bird’s film … be aware that other than the fact that there is a giant iron robot from space that likes to eat metal, and a child name Hogarth, there is little resemblance between the two. (And I just realized that the Hogarth in the book never has a surname, whereas in the movie, his name is Hogarth Hughes.)

Hughes’ book isn’t perfect, but it is delightful, and that makes up for a lot, in my book.

FYI: There is a “sequel” of sorts, titled The Iron Woman which deals with environmental issues.