I’ve been reading a lot of children’s books lately, which is a delightful situation. And The Twenty-One Balloons, in particular, is a delightful book. 
I first read this book as a child and adored it, and I was so excited to read it again. The Twenty-One Balloons is the story of Professor William Waterman Sherman, a retired math teacher who’s sick of kids and is desperate for some solitude. He decides to take off in a hot-air balloon, with enough supplies to last him a year, and see where the wind takes him. It takes him to a most amazing place.
The story starts off with him being found floating in the Atlantic Ocean with the wreckage of 21 balloons. How did he end up there, only a few days after he took off? And where did he get all the extra balloons? The rest of the book is told in flashback, as Professor Sherman relates his adventures to a breathless crowd.
This is a quick read, a funny read, and best of all, it contains the beautiful idea of a Gourmet Government, which to me sounds like the perfect political system and at the very least can’t be any worse than what we have right now. I remember when I was little it was the ingenious inventions in this book that thrilled me, but now it’s the food. Such is life.
Really I can’t say anymore because how could I give away the delightful, original surprises this book has in store for the reader? It’s full of sly humor and the plot is so inventive. I’m so glad it held up to my childhood memories.
This is one of my favorite childhood books! I can still remember my 5th grade teacher reading it to us. It was so wonderfully weird.
Happy to report that it is still wonderfully weird and enjoyable as an adult!