To find your spine, there's no place quite like the public library. That's the lesson of "The Pagemaster," a splendidly original children's fantasy about the world of books, "where a boy's imagination can take root . . . where everything is possible."



Macaulay Culkin plays Richard, a timid child whose fearfulness is compounded by a headful of statistics. One dark and stormy afternoon, Richard takes refuge in an empty library at the edge of the woods. Mr. Dewey (Christopher Lloyd), the librarian, reads volumes, and suggests that Richard is in need of adventure. The boy declines and turns to leave -- only to be distracted by a vivid mural in the building's rotunda.



It's actually the doorway to an animated universe, where some of the best-loved characters from children's literature help him discover his strengths and conquer his fears.