The Title Book

Notes: My comments on this story contain a few spoilers, I placed warnings above the particular paragraphs.
Also, I categorized this as a 'Funny Read'. It's not a split-your-sides, laugh-out-loud read, but it is rather witty, once you get into it.

So I started reading this knowing nothing about the book, except that it was written by the bloke who wrote Peter Pan... (Mind you, I wasn't expecting something like the boy who didn't want to grow up.)

SKIP THIS PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON'T LIKE SPOILERS.
In short, it's about a man who, in order to be able to pay for his education to become a minister (and later has even political ambitions), promisses to wed a girl (who's a few years older than him). In return, her family pays for his education.
Years later, he's in politics, they're married and he falls in love with another woman. Also, it turns out his speeches ar not that great, without the delicate help from his wife... I won't tell whom he'll end up with.

THIS PART IS FAIRLY SPOILER FREE.
It took me forever to read these 80 pages (well, about 3 days, really. But I only managed to read a couple of pages at a time, so it felt like ages).
What kept tripping my reading flow up the first couple of pages was the 'dambrod', mainly because the Dutch word is 'dambord'. (the 2 reversed letters kept triggering my brain to scream 'typo!', even though it's correct).
But, it turned out to be a really interesting, and fairly funny read, once you get used to the form (it's written more or less like a play, with sort-of stage instructions.).
I did have a hard time figuring out Maggie. Did she just have an inferiority complex? Or was she just madly in love with John? Or was she an ambitious woman?

SPOILER ALERT, AGAIN (but, in my opinion it doesn't really influence the enjoyment of the story...)
I thought it was a shame Barrie didn't delve a bit deeper into her motives for standing by John like she does. On the other hand, it might be interpreted as part of 'the mystery that is woman', and part of the answer to the queastion the title raises...

This novella is food for thought, really, and definately worth a read!