Tales of Magic Boxed Set (Edward Eager Tales of Magic) [Paperback]

Edward Eager (Author), N. M. Bodecker (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2000 | Age Range: 8 and up | Series: Edward Eager Tales of Magic

Just in time for the holiday season, four classic Edward Eager Tales of Magic in one affordable package.
Ever since Half Magic first hit bookshelves in 1954, Edward Eager's Tales of Magic have been favorites with readers of all ages. Now his four most popular stories--Half Magic, Knight's Castle, Magic by the Lake, and The Time Garden--are available in one handsome package. Perfect for gift-giving or for introducing eager new readers to a whole world of wit and magic, these four books should brighten every child's library!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Magic abounds in Edward Eager's world. Whether his young heroes and heroines are awash in a lake full of magic, making double wishes on a half-magic coin, cavorting with Robin Hood and Ivanhoe, or "thyme" traveling, the adventures simply never stop. Eager's ability to mingle reality with fantasy, his delectable wordplay, and light, witty touch make all four of these adventures pure delight. With perfect new cover art by Quentin Blake, as well as the original interior drawings by N.M. Bodecker, this collection of paperbacks--including Half Magic, Knight's Castle, Magic by the Lake, and The Time Garden--deserves an exalted place on every bookshelf of classics. (Ages 8 to 12) --Emilie Coulter

Review

Magic abounds in Edward Eager's world. Whether his young heroes and heroines are awash in a lake full of magic, making double wishes on a half-magic coin, cavorting with Robin Hood and Ivanhoe, or "thyme" traveling, the adventures simply never stop. Eager's ability to mingle reality with fantasy, his delectable wordplay, and light, witty touch make all four of these adventures pure delight. With perfect new cover art by Quentin Blake, as well as the original interior drawings by N.M. Bodecker, this collection of paperbacks--including Half Magic, Knight's Castle, Magic by the Lake, and The Time Garden--deserves an exalted place on every bookshelf of classics. (Ages 8 to 12) --Emilie Coulter
  (Amazon.com Review ) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Age Range: 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Sandpiper (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152025464
• ISBN-13: 978-0152025465
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #31,762 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 65 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Books to reread all your life! October 29, 2000

By Bradley Friedman

Format:Paperback

If the popularity of Harry Potter is bringing old fantasy titles to life, I say bravo, especially if it means new readers are about to discover the books of Edward Eager. I read them first when I was eight or nine and now, over thirty years later, I still revisit the marvelous adventures of these two sets of children. Jane, Mark, Catherine and Martha let us in on the world of the 1920's as they embark on one hilarious magical adventure after another. Time Garden and Knight's Castle deal with another set of children during 1940's wartime. One of the most wonderful things about this series is discovering the connection between the two sets of kids, which all culminates on a South Seas Island in two different books. Like the Potter series, Eager's books charm with their mixture of modern life and ancient magical powers. I can't recommend them highly enough, and I'm going to purchase the boxed set for my niece for Christmas so that I can read them with her!

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Magic all around April 6, 2001

By E. A Solinas HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

A series of classic, semi-connected books by Edward Eager, the perfect appetite-filler for those waiting for the new Harry Potter/Redwell/any type of fantasy book. Funny, cute, sweet, well-developed, well-written, with strong lead characters and delightful sidelines characters. The magic is unusual, in that it crops up in places (such as a thyme garden) that you wouldn't expect.

"Half Magic" is the first of this line of books, in which a Nesbitlike cluster (Jane, Mark, Katharine and baby Martha) discover a little charm. It grants wishes - but here's the catch, you only get half of what you wished for. For instance, if you wish for a house to burn down, all that will burn down is a treehouse or toyhouse. A series of zany adventures follow, including a trek to medieval times and to the Sahara. The final double-wish is touching, to say the least.

"Magic By The Lake" take a different journey, in which the kids travel to a lakeside house. Of course, the lake has magical properties that allow them to journey through time and space at their wishes. Of course, some of them work and some backfire in hilarious ways.

"Knight's Castle" skips twenty years into the future, when the four kids are grown, and two have kids of their own. When Roger and his family have to travel to their cousins' house while his dad has surgery, he encounters a magic soldier figure who will grant his wishes -- by zapping him into the Ivanhoe setting, with all the toy splendor around it!

"Time Garden" is the sequel to "Knight's Castle," in which Roger, Ann, Eliza, and Jack are shipped off to an old house for the time being. They encounter the froglike Natterjack, a creature who allows them to use the magic thyme in the thyme garden.... If you word your wishes correctly, you will go where you wish to go...

With delightful illustrations by N.M. Bodecker, these books are a must for fantasy readers. Eager's tales are tightly bound together, but consist of vignette adventures, ranging from one a day to one a week. A timeless delight. Read more ›

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best, funniest, and most imaginative magic books ever November 27, 2002

By Candace Siegle, Greedy Reader

Format:Paperback

Knight's Castle was the first Edward Eager book I read and after that I could not get enough of them. Thirty years later they still make me laugh out loud and marvel at how surprising they are.

The element of surprise is the key, and what I've always felt Harry Potter lacked. Eager's kids are regular kids--just like the reader and her or his friends--who stumble across some thing or other that turns out to be magic. The children can control the magic thing, but first have to figure out exactly what it is, how to make it work for them, and what the catch is because there is always a catch. In the meantime all sorts of goofy stuff is going on all around them and they've got to corral the magic if they want it to do something special, which they always do.

Most of the books feature an age-range of characters, and a good balance of girls and boys. Eager's kids are always readers(which is why such fabulous things happen to them!) and which is fun for children who are readers themselves.

Any kid with a sense of humor and a yen for surprises will love these books.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Run, don't walk, and Hit your "Buy With 1-Click Now!" March 13, 2004

By Kathleen A. Martin

Format:Paperback

Every word Edward Eager wrote was magical - I started with "Half Magic" when I was eight, and the enchantment drove me to read every book he ever wrote, AND every book he ever referred to in his books! He opened worlds to me, the brilliant classical magic stories of Edith Nesbit, "Ivanhoe," "Little Women" and many, many others. Edward Eager made me a reader, then a lit student, then a librarian, and more than 40 years after discovering "Half Magic," he is still my very favorite writer. If you have children and grandchildren who like to hear you read to them, you won't be sorry you invested in Edward Eager.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Very Welcome Release October 16, 2000

By Melissa

Format:Paperback

With the popularity of Harry Potter, many parents are looking for other books with a fantasy theme to encourage their kids' love of reading - look no further these are they!

Magical things happen to ordinary children - but sometimes the magic doesn't quite work the way it was intended to. Written in the 50s, these books have aged surprisingly well. Right from the start, we know these children and recognise our peers, friends or children in their descriptions.

Having read these books myself as a child, I am now looking forward to sharing with friends' kids (and buying a set for my daughter, still too young for them yet but it gives me a chance to re-read them)

These wonderfully creative and unusual books will win children right from the start. Their episodic structure makes them wonderful "chapter books" for reading to younger kids (or less willing readers) while they are still terrific for older readers too.

And while I do love the new pictures by Quentin Blake, it's great to see the originals by NM Bodecker are still in place!