Mixed Magics: Four Tales of Chrestomanci (Chrestomanci, Book 5) [Hardcover]

Diana Wynne Jones (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up

Dapper, debonair, and wise, the great enchanter Chrestomanci has nine lives and a strong personality as well as strong magic. That personality reverberates in each of these four dazzling stories.

A warlock tries to escape Chrestomanci's justice by fleeing to another world-with hilarious results. Cat Chant and Tonino Montana reluctantly join forces when Chrestomanci sends them on a visit that turns suddenly dangerous. The youngest best-selling dreamer needs Chrestomanci's help when she finds she can't dream anymore. And as the gods of an ever-so-orderly world try to destroy the young Sage of Dissolution, Chrestomanci lends a hand.

Like Chrestomanci himself, acclaimed author Diana Wynne Jones has a graceful flair, which sparkles in the remarkable wit, imagination, and intelligence of these fast-paced tales.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

In Mixed Magics, celebrated British fantasy author Diana Wynne Jones has gathered together three previously published short stories and one brand new tale about the inventive enchanter with nine lives, Chrestomanci. Fans of Wynne Jones know that Chrestomanci is the powerful sorcerer responsible for making sure that the magical users of the many worlds that run parallel to ours don't mismanage their spells. In "Stealer of Souls," he is pitted against Master Spiderman, an evil monkey-magician who intends to make himself the most potent enchanter of all worlds by stealing the essence of other sorcerers. In "Carol Oneir's Hundredth Dream," Chrestomanci must discover the reason why Carol, a bestselling dreamer (she bottles her exciting dreams for others to sleep through and enjoy) is having dreamer's block. In "Warlock at the Wheel," Chrestomanci is so influential that he doesn't even have to show up--he sends his agent Kathusa to rescue a bewildered warlock from a little girl and her large dog, who, strangely enough, have taken him prisoner. And, in the most thought-provoking story, "The Sage of Theare," Chrestomanci must help a confused teen realize that questioning the will of the gods is not only healthy but necessary! Each story is, in turn, frightening, thoughtful, funny, and wise. Readers of Charmed Life and The Magicians of Caprona will be delighted to discover that Wynne Jones has brought back some well-loved characters from other Chrestomanci novels to engage in exciting new adventures. A mystical, humorous collection with wide appeal for young fantasy buffs. (Ages 10 to 13) --Jennifer Hubert

From Publishers Weekly

Not even the glamorous presence of the nine-lived enchanter Chrestomanci (star of the Chrestomanci Books, noted below) is enough to dispel the scraped-together air that pervades this grouping of four short stories, three of which were originally published in the 1980s. Things start off slowly with "Warlock at the Wheel," a shaggy-dog story detailing the misadventures of a would-be car thief whose magic has been removed--prior to the tale's beginning--by Chrestomanci. "Stealer of Souls," the only story original to the collection, is also its most ambitious and successful, offering Jones aficionados the pleasure of watching characters from different books (Charmed Life's Cat Chant and The Magicians of Caprona's Tonino Montana) meet for the first time. Overall, however, the collection feels cramped: Jones, hemmed in by the constraints of the short story form, fails to develop the exuberant momentum characteristic of her complex, enchantment-filled novels. Only die-hard fans are likely to derive satisfaction from these further glimpses of Chrestomanci and his multiple worlds. Ages 10-up.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Greenwillow Books (April 10, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060297050
• ISBN-13: 978-0060297053
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,532,238 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a Magical Journey, April 11, 2001

By 

"amiling" (Pittsburgh, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mixed Magics: Four Tales of Chrestomanci (Library Binding)

Ms. Jones takes the reader into the world of the Chrestomanchi in 4 wonderfully woven tales. Anyone who read the other books in the Chrestomanchi series will be enchanted to rediscover old characters and be interested in the new. I found that the works were masterfully created. It was wonderful how all the different worlds of kind of come together and explore new territories. Seeing characters like Cat, Antionio, Gabriel de Witt and Roberts Mordecai was great fun. I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An enchanting new Chrestomanci short story collection., April 12, 2001

By 

"shayamorph" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mixed Magics: Four Tales of Chrestomanci (Chrestomanci, Book 5) (Hardcover)

MIXED MAGICS is a delightful new short story collection continuing the Chrestomanci saga that Dianna Wynne Jones had woven years ago. Now readers will see the return of the famed Chrestomanci and the magic that emanates from some old characters in CHARMED LIFE and THE MAGICIANS OF CAPRONA. These are four Chrestomanci tales, and though I did not like the first and last story, one story is an extremely suspenseful, magical story that I could not put down. This brand new collection, MIXED MAGICS, includes the stories WARLOCK AT THE WHEEL, STEALER OF THE SOULS, CAROL O'NEIR'S HUNDREDTH DREAM, and SAGE AT THEARE. I particulary enjoyed STEALER OF THE SOULS, for it featured the return of Cat Chant and Tonino from previous novels. Master Spiderman, a shroudy, dark man, wants to be the most powerful nine-lived enchanter in the world -- and that's because he's going to have ten lives. And he's going to kidnap Cat and Tonino to do so ! Can the two join forces to stop the Master? The magic of this story is wonderful, and the book is extremely well written. All Chrestomanci fans, or fans old and new of Dianna Wynne Jones's heartwarming magical books should read MIXED MAGICS, the brand new, magical, and spine tingling short story collection, which will delight many a reader, flashing with spells, laughs, and magic galore, though it has lost the spark of the original four Chrestomanci novels.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Chrestomanci is back..., July 14, 2002

By 

E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mixed Magics: Four Tales of Chrestomanci (Chrestomanci, Book 5) (Hardcover)

Chrestomanci the nine-lived mage is one of the most interesting and amusing magicians in fantasy, and his slightly off-kilter parallel world is revisited in these four stories. Three were previously published, but the enchanting "Stealer of Souls" is new.

"Warlock at the Wheel" is the weakest of the stories, in which an unfortunate young warlock loses his magic to Chrestomanci, and tries to steal cars. Things don't turn out quite as he expects.

"Stealer of Souls" brings back several favorites from the four novels. Cat Chant becomes jealous when the talented Tonino Montana is brought to the castle by Chresomanci, but neither boy has time to deal with their problems. A strange magician called Spiderman kidnaps both boys as a part of his attempt to make himself a ten-lived magician -- one more powerful than even Chrestomanci.

"Carol Oneir's Hundredth Dream" features a little girl who controls her vivid and dramatic dreams, which are then bottled for others to use. Until the day Carol stops dreaming. She is taken to the magician Chrestomanci, who helps her discover that her dreams are being hit with a very unusual actors' strike...

In "The Sage of Theare," the future Sage of Dissolution is sent to Chrestomanci's orderly world, by the gods who are hoping to avoid having him destroy them. Chrestomanci takes the befuddled young Sage under his wing, and shows how asking questions is a very good thing.

I found these stories to be a refreshing return to the world of the dapper, hyper-brainy world of Chrestomanci. The only exception is "Warlock," in which he has no presence and is only mentioned. Jones' writing style is a little uneven, since these stories were written years apart, and as a result there is a slightly more cutesy feel to "Warlock" and "Dream" than to "Stealer." However, her flair for characterization is as present as ever; the characters feel real, whether we hear about things from their point of view, or whether they are a little more distant, such as Chrestmanci himself.

The main problem with this book is that once readers finish it, there are (at present) no more Chrestomanci-themed tales beyond these five books. Read and immerse yourself in Jones' enchanting universe.