The Wizard, the Ugly, and the Book of Shame [Hardcover]

Pablo Bernasconi (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 4 and up

Leitmeritz is a powerful wizard who uses his Red Book of Spells to help everyone— everyone, that is, except his assistant, Chancery. Chancery is not handsome. In fact, most people simply call him the Ugly. But one day while the wizard is away, the Ugly tries to cast a spell on himself . . . and gets disastrously funny results. Fanciful collage illustrations set the stage for a tale of sorcery, dragons, and some very unusual magical solutions.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-4–Up seventeen thousand, two hundred and nine stairs lives Leitmeritz, a wizard who can grant people their innermost wishes by using the spells in his Red Book. He has often warned his assistant, a square-headed, blue fellow with mismatched eyes and a strange jaw, not to touch the book, for Wizardry concerns wizards, and that's only me. But when Leitmeritz leaves the castle to help a unicorn in distress, Chancery opens the book and asks it to make him handsome. Letters and images fly out, and although he painstakingly replaces them before his master's return, disaster ensues. Suddenly, none of the spells work, and when a cure for sore feet causes a foot to sprout from the king's head, the wizard faces the ruler's wrath. Chancery finally confesses the truth, and Leitmeritz tells him that he can only set things right by making himself handsome without using magic. Bernasconi's collage illustrations are superimposed on letter cutouts and patterns, and the playful images that border the text invite close scrutiny. The sorcerer is a rotund, carrot-nosed individual with patched clothing, white curly whiskers right down to his fancy high-heeled shoes, and a pointy hat. Chancery's surprise resolution is a commentary on the true nature of beauty, and his behavior is reminiscent of that other bungling magician's assistant, Tomie dePaola's Big Anthony.–Marianne Saccardi, formerly at Norwalk Community College, CT
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About the Author

Pablo Bernasconi grew up in Patagonia, surrounded by lakes and mountains and snow and forest. He lived and worked in Buenos Aires for many years, but now lives in Rio Negro, Argentina, where he illustrates and design books, newspapers, and magazines. His work has won several awards for its originality, humor, and unusual view of life.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books (September 22, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582346739
• ISBN-13: 978-1582346731
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 9.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,900,007 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars VIVIDLY IMAGINED AND EYE-POPPING ILLUSTRATIONS, October 13, 2005

By 

Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Wizard, the Ugly, and the Book of Shame (Hardcover)

Argentinian Pablo Bernasconi has gifted us with some of the most unforgettable illustrations found in newspapers and magazines around the world. He's an award winning author/illustrator with a vivid imagination and non-stop humor. "The Wizard The Ugly and the Book of Shame" is sure to enchant both adults and children with its often hilarious storyline and eye-popping collage illustrations.

Leitmeritz, a workaholic wizard with a carrot nose, spends most of his time reading books of magic and experimenting with his potions. One of his most prized possessions is the Red Book of Spells, which contains the secrets of the world.

Of course, Leitmeritz needed help to collect ingredients for his spells, clean the castle, and purchase provisions in the nearby village. For this he has Chancery, a very unusual man. Chancery was sad because he was so unattractive. In fact, so homely that he was called "Ugly" by the village children.

Leitmeritz performs many wondrous things but the one thing he does not do is help Chancery by making him better looking. One day Leitmeritz leaves the castle to help a friend with a loose horn, and as Chancery is going about his chores he sees the Red Book of Spells. He cannot help himself, he opens it and tells it that he wants to be made handsome. At those words the book begins to shiver and shake unloosing a plethora of surprising results - all mirth provoking.

Five large stars for "The Wizard The Ugly and the Book of Shame."

- Gail Cooke

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great illustrations and nice story, July 21, 2010

By 

Ekaterina Floyd (USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Wizard, the Ugly, and the Book of Shame (Hardcover)

I generally do not like collages, which is exact style of the illustrations in this book. However, in this certain book the pictures are superb, I love them: very intricate details, nice, fresh, and modern style without too much sweet or too much junk.

The story itself has classic yet modern feel to it.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun and Learning Too!, December 13, 2005

By 

Shirley Priscilla Johnson "Author/Reviewer -... (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Wizard, the Ugly, and the Book of Shame (Hardcover)

In this book we meet Leitmeritz who is a powerful wizard who uses a Red Book of Spells to help people. He helps toads turn back into Prince's and people who are sick feel better, but he never helped Chancery, his assistant.
Chancery is not very handsome, well actually people call him Ugly and this makes him sad. The Wizard told him he must find out himself how not to be ugly so one day when the wizard is away Chancery tries to use his book. Oh no! Things couldn't go more wrong and poor Chancery is still ugly, and the Red Book of Spells is not working, but after Chancery tells the truth to the wizard and the book is back to normal; he finds out how to no longer be Ugly.
This is a cute tale showing how we are beautiful inside if we just look. The illustrations are well done and will capture the children's attention as they travel along in this mystical tale.