The Enchanted Castle (1st World Library Literary Society Classics) - Hardcover

Nesbit, Edith; Nesbit, E

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1421838427 ISBN 13: 9781421838427

Publisher: 1st World Library - Literary Society, 2007

Synopsis

There were three of them Jerry, Jimmy, and Kathleen. Of course, Jerry's name was Gerald, and not Jeremiah, whatever you may think; and Jimmy's name was James; and Kathleen was never called by her name at all, but Cathy, or Catty, or Puss Cat, when her bro

About this title

Review

A plot summary makes this story sound ordinary by children's literature standards: the summer adventures of four children who discover an enchanted castle and a magic ring. But Edith Nesbit's adored classic (written in 1907) is so much more than the description suggests. Right from the start, the author plays with the idea of magic, teasing us with a sleeping princess who turns out to be a fake. Elsewhere, the magic is "real" as can be--in fact, though written nearly 100 years ago, The Enchanted Castle prefigures the magical realism of modern novels in the matter-of-fact way it weaves the uncanny into the children's everyday life. And, while few authors are confident enough to parody bad writing, Nesbit does it hilariously (and ever so gently) through one character's tendency to "talk like a book": "'To brush his hair and his clothes... was to our hero but the work of a moment,' said Gerald." Things turn scary when the Ugly Wuglies, fake people made from painted cardboard masks, old clothes, and broomsticks, come to life. But on the whole this book about enchantment--much praised by such luminaries as H.G. Wells and Noel Coward--is, simply, enchanting. (Ages 6 and older) --Richard Farr

About the Author

Edith Nesbit (1858-1924) was the author of a number of much-loved stories in which ordinary children encounter magical adventures in the everyday world. Her novels include the three-book series Five Children and It, The Phoenix and the Carpet, and The Story of the Amulet. Her other books include The Enchanted Castle, which is also available from Books of Wonder/Morrow in a handsome gift editionfeaturingPaul o. Zelensky's paintings..

Edition details

• Publisher: 1st World Library - Literary Society
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1421838427
• ISBN 13: 9781421838427
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 252
• Editor: 1stworld Library