British literature summaries - 2020

Short summary - Peter Pan
Sir James Matthew Barrie

The Darling family has three weather children. The eldest is Wendy, then comes John, and then Michael. They have an unusual nanny - a big black diver dog named Nena. One evening, going into the bedroom with the children already in bed, Mrs. Darling sees a boy flying into the window, and after him - a strange luminous spot. She screams in surprise, Nan runs to scream. The boy manages to flutter out the window, but in Nena’s teeth his shadow remains! Mrs. Darling rolls it up and puts it in a chest of drawers.

A few days later, Mrs. and Mr. Darling are going to visit. In a hurry, Mr. Darling collides with Nena, and on his trousers - that's the trouble! - there is wool. Mr. Darling kicks Nana into the yard and puts her on a chain. As soon as parents leave the house, a small light flies to the children - this is the Tinker Bell fairy, she is looking for a shadow. Peter Pan appears after her. By the sign of Tinker Bell (a fairy can't speak, she makes a melodious ringing) Peter finds a shadow and tries to attach it back, but nothing comes out. Peter begins to cry, and his sobs wake Wendy. Upon learning what was going on, Wendy sews a shadow on Peter's heels. It hurts a little, but he suffers. Feeling confidence in Wendy, Peter tells her about himself: he ran away from home, deciding to never become an adult. He lives on Netinebud Island with the lost boys ("when a child falls out of a stroller, he goes to Netinebud country"). At the same time, something turns out about fairies: it turns out that fairies are born from children's laughter and every child has his own fairy. But as soon as someone thinks "stupid, there are no fairies in the world" - and the fairy dies.

Upon learning that Wendy knows how to tell tales, Peter calls Wendy to the island (“I will teach you to fly, and we will fly together”) so that she tells fairy tales and is the mother of all the lost boys. Wendy hesitates, but still agrees. John and Michael are flying with her.

The inhabitants of the island are preparing to meet with Peter. The boys are looking for a place where Peter lands. Pirates, led by captain Jez Hook, are looking for boys, redskins (their leader is the Great Little Panther) are looking for pirates, and wild animals are looking for redskins to eat them.

Anticipating the arrival of Wendy, the fairy Tinker Bell appears. She (out of jealousy!) On behalf of Peter orders the boys to shoot Wendy with a bow. They have no reason to doubt, and one of them shoots. Wendy falls to the ground and lies dead. But she did not die, she was saved by an acorn that hung around her neck, a gift from Peter Pan, and an arrow pierced him. But Wendy is very weak, and all the boys, led by the approaching Peter, build her a house, erecting it right around her. The house turns out pretty good. Wendy is seriously engaged in her duties: she cooks, erases, darn, and, of course, tells fairy tales.

Pirates do not leave the boys alone. Captain Hook - his name has been since Peter cut off his hand, instead of which he had to fix the iron hook - Peter cannot forgive this, especially since the crocodile swallowed his hand so much that he liked it so much that he hunts Hook It’s good that you can hear it by the ticking of the captain’s wristwatch, which didn’t stop walking in the crocodile belly. The captain comes up with the idea to bake the poisoned cake for the boys to die, but he does not manage to achieve anything in this way - Wendy does not allow them to eat sweets, and the cake stays safely in the meadow until the captain stumbles over it in the dark and falls to the ground. One day, the pirates want to tie the Indian Princess Tiger Lily to a rock in the lagoon to flood it with a tide. Peter Pan manages to trick the pirates, ordering them (in the voice of Captain Hook) to release her. Then Peter has to fight with Hook, and he wounds him. Peter Saves the Bird. No.

One evening, Wendy tells the boys their favorite fairy tale - about how one gentleman and one lady lived, where one day the children flew to Netinebud Island. And how they always kept the window open so that the children could fly home.

Peter objects to Wendy: he had also thought about mothers like that before, and so he was in no hurry to return. And when he arrived, the window was closed, and another boy was sleeping in his bed.

Then John and Michael, the Wendy brothers, realize that they need to hurry home. Wendy also calls with the rest of the boys, confident that her parents will certainly adopt them. Everyone agrees, except Peter Pan, who doesn't want to get big. Peter asks the Indians to see Wendy and the boys, but the pirates intervene again. They manage to defeat the Indians in dishonest ways and capture Wendy and the boys. Peter learns about this from Tinker Bell and rushes to the rescue. There is a decisive battle between Peter Pan and Captain Hook. The pirates are defeated. The boys and Wendy are flying home.

Meanwhile, in London, Mrs. and Mr. Darling continue to wait for the children and never close the nursery's windows. And Mr. Darling cannot forgive himself for not having kicked Nanu out of the house that terrible evening and put her on a chain. Therefore, he vowed until the children returned to live in a doghouse, he was taken to work in it and brought home from work. Mrs. Darling sits down at the piano and begins to play. At this time, Peter and Tinker Bell arrive. They close the window so that Wendy decides that mom no longer waits for her and does not love her, and would return with Peter to the island. But there is great sadness in the sound of music, and Peter opens the window again. Wendy, John and Michael fly in the window and climb into their beds. Mother discovers them, calls for her father, and Nana also runs into the room. Everyone is happy. And the boys are waiting below, while Wendy tells their parents about them. Counting up to five thousand, they enter the house and line up in front of Mrs. Darling. Of course, both Mrs. and Mr. Darling decided to adopt them! Peter flies off to the island again. He promises Wendy to fly next year, but forgets about it. And when Peter reappears, Wendy is already married and she has a little daughter Jane.

Not noticing the changes, Peter calls Wendy with him, but she refuses with a sigh, because she is already an adult. Wendy leaves the room to calm down, and Peter Pan sits on the floor and cries. His sobs wake Jane.

And everything repeats again.

When Jane grows up, her daughter Margaret is born, and now Margaret flies with Peter Pan to Netinebud Island ... And this will continue until the children cease to be so cheerful, incomprehensible and heartless.