Doctor Who: The Runaway TARDIS

The latest Pop Classics storybook from Quirk Books is my favorite. Doctor Who: The Runaway TARDIS is, as with the others, illustrated by Kim Smith, who has a gorgeous, approachable, colorful style. The other credit is “based on the series by Chris Chibnall”, which means it’s the thirteenth Doctor, with a likeness to Jodie Whittaker.

I’ve previously covered The Karate Kid and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and this follows the same pattern: The movie books retell the story, but the TV books have new adventures with the heroes, in a kid-friendly format.

In this case, Lizzie runs away after a bad first day at a new school. She accidentally stows away in a big blue box, where she meets the Doctor and has a variety of trips, all of which (coincidentally) make for beautiful vistas, such as this one:

As expected from a children’s picture book, Lizzie helps and makes some friends and learns an important lesson. But even as an adult, I was pleasantly surprised by how well the conflict and the Doctor tied everything together. This isn’t a story you could have told with any other property, which makes it special, because it ties into something very deep in the Doctor.

I really really wish they’d do a Sherlock Pop Classics. I would buy copies for all my friends, because Smith’s way with characters is adorable. That’s why I’m there for any of the books in this series. (The publisher provided a review copy.)