The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon: A Pop-up Book    by Stephen King Order:  USA  Can Simon & Schuster, 2004 (2004) Hardcover      Reviewed by Hilary Williamson I've been impressed by the innovation of graphic novels, but this extraordinary version of Stephen King's The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon goes even further - it combines text (adapted by Peter Abrahams) with 3D graphics (Alan Dingman did the illustrations, Kees Moerbeek the 'Paper engineering' of the pop-ups). Inside is a succession of story booklets accompanied by impressive pop-ups with animations controlled by tabs. Trisha is traveling with Mom (divorced) and her older (reluctant) brother Pete, to Western Maine for an Appalachian Trail hike. To pass the time, she fantasizes about Red Sox's Tom Gordon. On the trail, she takes a shortcut, gets lost, and hears voices in her head - one cold and unkind, the other (Tom Gordon's) inspiring. There are insects and marshes - she's stung by wasps and weakened by fears. She travels for days, sick and feverish, stalked by the 'God of the Lost', but supported by her hero worship of Tom Gordon. What did she learn? That 'Life was good and bad at the same time', and that 'You had to be still inside in save situations ... had to look the opposition in the eye and show you were better.' The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is brilliant and innovative, and an excellent choice to entice reluctant readers into a story. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Kids books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews