In the Lives of Puppets

Carlo Collodi’s The Adventures of Pinocchio is one of the most famous pieces of Italian literature and is cherished as a classic children’s story around the world. Pinocchio’s adventures originally appeared as a serialized story in a children’s magazine in 1881. Due to their great popularity, they were then compiled and published as a novel in 1883. The story begins when a poor man named Geppetto carves an enchanted piece of wood into a puppet, which springs to life as the titular character. Geppetto is a kindly father to Pinocchio, but the puppet misbehaves by lying, refusing to go to school, and engaging in other mischief. The story’s antagonists include the Cat and the Fox, who steal from Pinocchio and try to kill him by hanging him from a tree. The Fairy with Azure Hair saves him and gives him opportunities to be good. Eventually, Pinocchio rescues Geppetto from the belly of a monster known as the Terrible Dogfish. The fairy rewards Pinocchio for his good deeds by transforming him into a real boy. Ultimately, Pinocchio is a story that says positive change is possible and rewards its protagonist’s growth.

In the Lives of Puppets borrows many elements from Collodi’s novel while bringing a distinctive, updated perspective to the classic tale. Both are adventure stories that wrestle with philosophical questions about what it means to be human. Klune shifts the genre from fairy tale to science fiction. Victor and Hap are both Pinocchio figures in their own ways. Like the famed wooden boy, Victor goes on a dangerous journey to find his father and meets an array of antagonists and allies on his perilous, philosophically charged adventures. Like Victor, Hap is Pinocchio-coded. The young inventor uses wood to repair the android, which gives him a marionette-like appearance. Additionally, like Pinocchio, Hap turns from the wrongs he’s committed and experiences rebirth through metamorphosis. Hap remains inorganic, but he becomes real through personal transformation and the relationships he develops. Additionally, antagonists like the Terrible Dogfish, the Coachman, the Cat, and the Fox all appear in Klune’s novel in reimagined ways. A fairy facilitates a happy ending in Klune’s updated version, but Klune’s Blue Fairy is an intimidating presence that contrasts strongly with the warm, maternal Fairy with Azure Hair of the original story.

The novels also differ in terms of tone and target audience. Collodi’s protagonist is a mischievous little boy while Klune’s is a kind-hearted 21-year-old. The protagonists’ ages reflect the ages of each novel’s target audiences. Klune preserves the importance of the father-son dynamic while adding a love story not found in the original tale. Collodi’s style is deliberately didactic to provide moral instruction for its young audience: “Like many Tuscan folk tales, Pinocchio has important moral lessons for children: e.g., disobedience does not pay, telling lies is seldom prudent, and boys who love and take care of their parents will be rewarded” (“The Adventures of Pinocchio.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 2023). Klune, however, avoids giving clear-cut answers to the philosophical and moral questions his story raises. Instead, he invites his readers to ponder what it means to be human, why love is so complex, and who has the right to forgive.