Customer Reviews

Finder's Magic

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From the minute I opened Finder's Magic until the final page the book held my attention. The story was so real that I was wanting to help the boys find a solution.

I cannot wait until my grandsons are old enough to read this book. It is so well written, it will be a great experience for them.

It brought back events my mother told me about in Atlanta in this same period. Mrs. Fleming has certainly captured the feelings of children approaching a time of making adult decisions when they are still in their childhood years. Because of my age, it was a challenge to see the events as a child would. I wanted to protect them and was very grateful for the "Finder". It sort of makes you want to become a "Finder" for the children in your neighborhood today.

Intrigue starts on the very first page of FINDER'S MAGIC, and is just the thing to pull in an 8 to 12-year-old boy. But don't tell your reluctant reader he'll learn anything as he plunges head-on into the corrupt and dangerous world of Hank McCord's 1911 Atlanta. Mention instead the mystery surrounding Hank's best friend's death; mention the murderers on his heels; and especially mention the scary old conjure woman, the Finder, who may just hold the key to Hank's future, if he lives long enough to have one. No; let the lessons come to your young reader invisibly through the story. He'll never suspect. And he might just put down that GameBoy for a while.

The imagery in this book is so vivid, the dialogue so real, that it almost played out like a movie in my head as I read it. The action starts out right off the bat, with the plain-speaking young millworker boy narrator witnessing a murder--and then it gets even more exciting. And it's all wrapped up in an evocative picture of the early 1900s South--the KKK and black shanty towns and child labor and flaky biscuits and catfish in muddy fishin' holes. It's a neat book, one I think most kids, especially boy kids, would have a hard time putting down.

I am a great fan of good old fashioned American literature and storytelling. Since I was a kid I was fascinated by authors like Mark Twain who wove the real lives of ordinary Americans into his great books. C.M. Fleming has carried on this great tradition in Finder's Magic. You can almost taste the humidity in the air as she weaves this story of murder in the deep south. I relished every page.

In the spirit of Huck Fin and Tom Sawyer, Connie Fleming takes the reader to a magical place. Strong characters abound as Finder's Magic revels a simpler time where the choices were fewer but more deadly. Fleming builds the story to a thrilling climax that is a testament to her writing skills. Well written and provocative, Finder's Magic is a great read.

[...]

I've read Finder's Magic and I absolutely loved it! While reading it, I felt as if I was watching a movie. C.M. Fleming does a great job of making you feel as if you're right in the thick of things with Calvin and Hank. This book teaches a wonderful message of acceptance and is one that I feel children of all ages will enjoy.

Author C. M. Fleming weaves a tale that is powerful and enduring.

Hank McCord and Calvin Yates could not be more different and under normal circumstances, neither would ever choose to be dependent on the other - for anything! Now, the survival of both depends on their ability to pull together, in order to outwit the men who have framed them for the murder of Hank's best friend.

As a former elementary teacher, I highly recommend this book. Not only is it a captivating tale, but easy read and especially good for reluctant readers. It is packed full of action and suspense on nearly every page and leaves the reader wanting more.

Find yourself a nice comfy chair. Lock the door. And prepare to read non stop. This book is not only filled with characters so engaging you don't want to leave them behind, but the action is non stop. Putting this book down to do Anything else is out of the question.
Kathleen

Atlanta author, C.M. Fleming, presents readers with a riveting read in her debut novel, Finder's Magic. Full of mysterious atmosphere and authentic Southern characters, readers, both boy and girl, will be captivated from the very beginning as Hank McCord witnesses the murder of his best friend by two supervisors at the mill where he works. Calvin Yates, a black boy, also witnesses this murder and the two boys must run for their lives. I especially enjoyed the mysterious "conjure woman," Miz Mancala. Also, the first person point of view works very well in this story. Readers of Finder's Magic will be eager for the next installment of mystery and intrigue, Southern style, from this up and coming children's and young adults' author, C.M. Fleming.