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Title: Half Magic: Fiftieth-Anniversary Edition
ISBN: 0152053026
Author:
Edward Eager
Publicate Date: 2004-10-01
Publish: 2004-10-01
List Price: $19.95
Average Customer Rating: 4.5
Format: Hardcover
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $11.00
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $3.15
Amazon Merchant Price: $13.57
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Yeah, I agree, Harry who?
I first read this book as a small child. I am now in my 50's, and while there have been so many wonderful books created for children (including the excellent Potter series), I really feel that Half Magic stands as the best of them all. This is a delightful book, often quite funny, often almost heartbreaking in its poignant rendering of the joyful entry of magic into the lives of four somewhat unhappy children - and ultimately very wise in its message of human love as the most powerful magic of all. The book suceeds on various levels, and is now as much fun to read to children and grandchildren as it was to discover it in childhood. If I could have only one children's book in my collection, it would be this one.
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2: Can't recommend this strongly enough!
I'm 35 now and have had the original 50's version of this book since the third grade--it's been one of my most treasured possessions ever since. The story is delightful and the illustrations wonderfully unique. I picked up a recent boxed set of this and Eager's other books (softcover), but was highly disappointed with the third rate revised covers from a frankly hack artist. In any case, this anniversary edition restores the original, unparalleled cover. Get this book, you won't be disappointed. I can't wait to share this new edition with my daughters (the original can stay on the shelf). Harry who?
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3: Half Magic Is ALL Magic
I first read Half Magic when I was about seven years old. It was the first book I read "all by myself" and I was thunderstruck. It's a wonderfully literary and literate story of four siblings who find a magic charm that works by halves. (If, for example, you wish to be on a desert island, you might end up in the desert.) They have to figure out the "rules" as they go along, and they learn lessons along the way. The author, Edward Eager, is obviously a big fan of E. Nesbit, and acknowledges his debt to her in this and other books. Mr. Eager never "talks down" to his young readers, and I think this allows the book to stand up well for those of us who re-read it as adults. I would certainly recommend this for childen who are ready to "really read" and the adults willing to let them.
I must also say that I love the illustrations, too, and I much prefer the cover of the hardback edition to that of the paperback.
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4: Plenty of fun
These days, when so many of us are reading the Harry Potter books, it may be good to remember some of the more classic fantasy tales of a couple of generations ago. Yes, one could try "Peter Pan" and all the Oz books, but there were a bunch of other books such as this one which I think were excellent as well.
I think that "Half Magic" is about right for kids around eight or so. The language is about right for children (the toughest line for a really young reader might be "whence do you hail?"). And it is simply a charming little book. We get to read about a talking cat, visits to faraway places, and maybe best of all, a person who is not exactly all there.
I highly recommend this book. Of course, it's supposed to be only for kids. We grownups are supposed to be way past reading this sort of thing. And if we did read it, we probably wouldn't admit it. But some kids will still recommend this book to their grandmothers, and I think they're right to do so.
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5: My all time favorite children's book
I first read "Half Magic" in elementary school and I have read it 4 or 5 times, since. It is a funny, exciting, literate, book that is good for all ages. Toddlers will miss a lot of what it has to say, but get the adventure.
Four children find a magic charm that grants wishes by halves. Fun and adventure happens when they use the charm and when they forget its secret. Their lives and the lives of those they love are made much better. When the book is finished, the reader smiles and wishes there were more. There are more books in the series, but this one is the best.
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