February 3, 2002
MarkBernstein.org
 

Half Magic

Half Magic
Edward Eager

A classic children's tale, best read out loud. Linda read this to me over several Singapore evenings from an old, ex-library copy I found for her.

It's a delightfully-imagined family story about a suburban clan who stumbled across an Ancient Charm that delivers half of anything you wish. Eager avoids reprising Aladdin and evades the easy gimmicks, and he draws his children well and distinctly. (They get along altogether too well, but after all this is the 50s) Like The Secret Garden, this is a much darker story than you'd expect; our modern fairy tales do seem to be littered with dead parents.