Overview:

The enchanting biography of Reverend W. Awdry, a devoted pastor and family man, who adored trains. He started to tell stories about Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends, in order to entertain his son Christopher. Those stories have gone on to entertain generations of children around the world. A convinced pacifist, Awdry was thrown out of one curacy and denied another during the Second World War, because of his beliefs. He was a man of courage, who believed that you should live by certain rules. He built his imaginary world on the island of Sodor on these rules, and showed how those who transgressed them would always be 'punished, but never scrapped', as he said. The Thomas the Tank Engine Man is a charming biography and a fascinating insight into the life of Reverend W. Awdry.

_______________________________________________________

Review:

Overall I thought the book was a little boring. Learning the history of Thomas the Tank Engine's creator was interesting, though it often felt that Rev. W. Awdry's life was being explained between Railway Series quotes. There were quite a few unnecessary and long winded anecdotes that had little to do with the biography's central plot. Awdry was a father, husband, son, brother, clergyman, friend, and railway enthusiast.  The majority of the book focuses on a chronological reporting of the Railway Series, not the life of the man who was wrote them. In many ways, it felt like for all the stories biographer Brian Sibley, few spoke to the life and character of the subject.

 

All that said, reading about Awdry's writing process and methodology was very interesting. His research for the Island of Sodor and its residents is extremely impressive. I had no idea that Awdry ranked with Tolkien and authors who have developed vast worlds parallel to our own. I'd be interested to learn more about Sodor and Awdry, through a different lens.

* I received this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review.