Box of Delights (New Windmills) [Hardcover]

John Masefield (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 1986 | Series: New Windmills

Kay finds himself involved in a fantastic adventure when he becomes guardian of the mysterious Box of Delights.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

 

“The book that always had the magic of a snowy English Christmas…. It’s still a lovely book, magical and funny, to be read by anybody of any age.” —The Horn Book


"This classic of English children's literature, sadly overlooked by most on this side of the Atlantic, has just been reissued in a beautiful edition by the New York Review Children's Collection...Although "The Box of Delights" was first published in 1935, Masefield's intoxicating prose has lost none of its pull...in this wonderful tale of bravery and intrigue that deserves to become another staple of the holidays." --The San Francisco Chronicle

 

"First published in 1935, The Box of Delights by John Masefield is newly available. In the adventure-laden Christmas story, Kay Harker (also the protagonist of Masefield's The Midnight Folk) returns from boarding school for the holidays and becomes involved in a struggle with a wizard and witch who wish to possess the eponymous box." --Publishers Weekly

 

"This uniquely imaginative tale would be a delight for fans of old-fashioned, English Literature and could be compared to the likes of A Christmas Carol and the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe." --CLEAR Reviews

 

 

“[Masefield’s] most popular children’s book…Original and remarkable.” –The New York Review of Books

 

“Masefield's novel, a plum pudding of strange adventures, English legend, and spiritual feeling, should be more widely appreciated” –The Washington Post

 

“The Box of Delights' is based on a 1935 story by famous English poet John Masefield, and it's crammed full of fantasy and adventures, almost as if every known children's story had been combined in one. There's space travel and time travel and evil villains and holiday sentiments and adventures, adventures, adventures.” –The Seattle Times

 

“Every chapter in this book is marvelous, but the real delight derives from Masefield’s style and the idiosyncratic, colorful speech of his various characters…Lovely stuff.” –The Washington Post

 

“This book is a writer’s oft-raided treasure trove…the world’s best ‘crossover book’…It does time-travel better than Narnia…The story floats on brilliant, eccentric dialogue and…never loses its snowy-Christmas, Nutcracker enchantment…” –The Independent (UK)

 

“Masefield the children’s writers is unbeatable.” –The Daily Telegraph (UK)

 

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

About the Author

John Masefield (1878—1967) was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1930 until his death. He is remembered as the author of the classic children's novels The Midnight Folk and The Box of Delights, two novels Captain Margaret and Multitude and Solitude and a great deal of poetry, including his anthology Saltwater Ballads. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Heinemann Educational Publishers (December 31, 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0435120417
• ISBN-13: 978-0435120412
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magical Christmas adventure, November 14, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Box of Delights: When the Wolves Were Running (Hardcover)

I highly recommend this children's book; even adults may find themselves carried away by this fantastical story. Set in 1930's England, it follows the Christmas holiday adventures of Kay Hawker and his cousins Peter, Susan, and Jemima. On the train home from school, Kay meets a stange and kindly old man. As they become friends, the old man gives Kay a precious treasure to guard, the Box of Delights. It is a magic instrument that can shrink you to the size of an insect, can make you fly, and can take you backward or forward through time. It turns out the old man has an unusual past, and there are ambitious villians after him and the box. Because the villians are disguised and passing themselves of as men of the cloth, the children have a difficult time exposing them. They are resourseful, however, and succeed in their quest to save the box and their Christmas celebrations. This story incorporates the mythical heroism of legend ( ie King Arthur, the Trojan War, Hern the Hunter and Fairy folk) with contemporary bad guys, car chases, kidnappings, and rescues. An excellant British/Canadian television special was produced about fifteen years ago that brings this story to life. Either are very enjoyable for boys and girls, and people of all ages.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A magical children's adventure, October 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Box of Delights: When the Wolves Were Running (Hardcover)

John Masefield, who died in 1967, was best known as a poet. He did a few juvenile adventure stories of which "The Box of Delights" (1935) is by far the best. It is the sequel to "The Midnight Folk", an occult adventure in which young Kay Harker discovers that his governess, Sylvia Pouncer, is a witch.

As the first reviewer has already given an exhaustive precis of this work I will just add that it is a delightful Christmas thriller and the BBC TV version is a wonderful and faithful retelling of the story.

A forgotten classic - among the 10 best children's thrillers, IMHO.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not that edition, January 30, 2009

By 

E. Stein (Bedford, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Box of Delights (New York Review Children's Collection) (Hardcover)

Another reviewer warns against this edition (the New York Review Children's Collection), saying that it is an abridged one; it is not. There is another version that is available that is abridged, but this is not it.