Mahy, Margaret - Books - Magic Bean Dip

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The Seven Chinese Brothers (Blue Ribbon Book)

Margaret Mahy

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By: Scholastic - Model: SB-0590420577
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

The Seven Chinese Brothers 4 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Have you read the book called "The Seven Chinese Brothers"?
The story is mainly about seven brothers who want to help people. Each brother has a special gift of power. Each of the brothers gets in trouble and help each other when they get in trouble. I hope you like it.

My Son Liked This Book a Lot... 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

... and that's the best review I can give it. We read it together in the Spanish-language edition, with the same colorful illustrations. If there's a moral to the story, it has to do with solidarity between the brothers, recognition of differing skills, appreciation of each other's worth.

There's another book called The Five Chinese Brothers, which perhaps teaches the same lessons in a less 'terrifying' narrative. My thought is that both books belong in a good children's library, along with the story of the Chinese girl who goes to war in her father's stead. American children deserve some taste of the heroism of China to counteract the still-rampant discrimination against all things Chinese.

Editorial Review:

The Seven Chinese BrothersMargaret Mahy, Illustrations Jean and Mou-sien Tseng. A magnificently illustrated and authentic retelling of the classic Chinese folk tale of the seven brothers and their supernatural gifts. "Exceptional." -SLJ, starred review Grade Level: PreK-2

17 Kings And 42 Elephants (Dial Books for Young Readers)

Margaret Mahy

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By: Dial
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A poem in words and pictures 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 10 people found this review helpful.

This narrative was perhaps the first poem my children learned--and both they and I love it.
"Seventeen kings and fourty-two elephants
Going on a journey on a wild wet night"
meet all sorts of wonderful creatures in their travels through the lush jungle inhabitting these pages. There are white-toothed crocodiles, green-eyed dragons, small crabs, ponderous hippoptomums, dancing "to the music that the marchers made," not to mention tigers, cranes, pelicans, peacocks, and twangling trillicans. They go off into the night as raindrops glisten on the elephants' backs and the deep dark jungle devours their tracks. Altogether a delightful journey into word play and magical illustrations. Alyssa A. Lappen

Our family LOVES this book 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

My husband made up a song to go with the words - this is one of our family's favorites! A very sing-songy read with made up words and a short but sweet narrative. Get this book and try to make up a tune to go with the poetry. This is not a counting book. If you like imagination and poetry, you'll love this.

Editorial Review:

Where those kings are headed is a mystery, but no travelers ever had such a jolly time. Here is a royal romp through a tongue-twisting paradise. 32 full-color illustrations.

The Great Piratical Rumbustification & the Librarian and the Robbers

Margaret Mahy; Michael Smith, Michael Smith

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By: David R Godine
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Mahy doing what Mahy does best 5 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

It's kind of sad that the lack of reviews here makes it look like no one has looked at this funny book on this site since 1998. It's very funny and just the kind of book a young boy would make any adult read to him over and over. And girls will like it too.
If you had put your hand over my eyes and read the first paragraph of the first story to me, with main characters Alpha, Oliver and Omega, I would have known who wrote it right away. It has Mahy's rhythm, her humor that comes from the sound of the words, the alliteration she loves. This is a book made to be read aloud. It sounds funny, and it means funny too. The plot of these two stories twist in ways that, even having read a lot of Mahy, I never could have predicted. Everytime I encounter one of her stories, I wonder how that kind of twist came to her. I wish I could do it myself.
The first story is about three boys who have recently moved into a house. In the apartment, whenever the boys tried to do something adventuresome, they were told to wait until they were in a big house. Then they'd have space enough to have an adventure. Well, they were in the new house, and nothing was happening... until a pirate decides their house is the perfect place to "steal" a party.
In the second story, a bunch of atypical robbers kidnap an orphaned librarian reasoning that her "parents" would be the city, and they would have to come up with ransom in order to open the library again. But of course, the librarian always wins. Mahy was herself a librarian for many years.
Perfect read-aloud book. Lots of fun. And the illustrations are an extra (goofy) plus. They are done by Quentin Blake, the illustrator who worked on Roald Dahl's books, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, BFG, The Witches etc. You'll recognize his style when you see it.

Editorial Review:

Wild and wonderful, these stories will appeal to all readers of fine children's literature, and Blake's illustrations, full of spirit and exuberance, are the perfect accompaniment of Mahy's vigorous tales.

The Great Piratical Rumbustification introduces us to Alpha, Oliver, and Omega Terrapin, alone for an evening of devilish fun and none other than Orpheus Clinker, a reformed pirate cleverly transformed into a respectable babysitter. Or has he reformed? Before you can say "Yo Ho Ho" the Terrapin household has become headquarters of the century's biggest pirate party.

The Librarian and the Robbers is an equally tickling tale of a band of wicked robbers who one day carry off Serena Leburnum, a beautiful librarian. Follow what happens as the lovely and learned Miss L. not only outwits the robbers, turning them into outstanding citizens, but also teaches them the everlasting pleasures of the Dewey Decimal System.

The Haunting (Puffin Books)

Margaret Mahy

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By: Puffin Books
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Whither wander you, spirit? 4 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

Some people say that the leap taken by adult authors to writing books for children (Elmore Leonard, Michael Chabon, and Salman Rushdie are all good examples of this) is a harsh and difficult one. I say a far more difficult leap is that from young adult author to children's. Oh it may not sound difficult at first. But where the adult-to-child author can fudge the ages of their readers, the young-adult-to-child author must be aware at all times of the specific mindset of their audience. This may result in beautiful writing or watered down material that's too old for the intended audience. Margaret Mahy is a premiere young adult author. If you've any sense, you'll rush out and buy her "Catalogue of the Universe" at once without blinking. What's most remarkable about Mahy though is her penchant for occasionally drifting into children's works as well. These might range from the beautiful picture book, "Ultra-Violet Catastrophe" (a favorite of mine) to the slightly older chapter book, "The Haunting". Like all her tales, "The Haunting" focuses on relationships between family members and the bond that ties us to our relatives. It has the familiar creepy quality of her other works, but is age appropriate and (to be frank) thrilling.

Barney has a problem. He knows he's about to be haunted by a ghost and there's nothing he can do about it. This isn't anything new for Barney, of course. Years ago he was haunted by three different ghosts and they were all quite friendly. Now, however, there's a blond boy in blue crushed velvet following him around and saying, "Barnaby's dead! I'm going to be very lonely". Since Barney's full name is Barnaby, he's not exactly pleased with this message. Soon other strange things start to happen to the boy and his instincts tell him he's helpless in the face of them. Fortunately, he has an incredibly loving family to rely on instead. There's Clair, his beloved stepmother who is pregnant with her first child. And there's his sister Tabitha, plump and happy and ready to talk a mile a minute. There's Barney's father and his mysterious sister Troy who never says much but always seems to be most unhappy. With the help of his family members, as well as an assortment of great-uncles, grandparents, and one wicked old great-grandmother, Barney slowly learns to unravel the mystery of what exactly is haunting him.

More than any other children's author I've read, Margaret Mahy makes me want to quote long phrases of her prose to passing strangers on the street. Just listen to some of the sentences in this book. About Barney's evil great-grandma Scolar: "I don't mind her being wrinkled.... It's just that all her wrinkles are so angry. She's like a wall with furious swear words scribbled all over it". Or this section that describes the neatness of Troy's room: "Troy's homework was set out on her desk as immaculately as if she had been going to do a heart operation on it. Her tiny writing ran across sheets of paper as if a regiment of minute insects with inky feet had marched with enormous precision over the pages". Mahy's a master at the fabulous descriptive passage. Her characters too are imbued with a kind of life and verve you only hope you could find in a good children's book. Better still, they really like one another. I mean, they're incredibly fond of one another's thoughts and feelings. Most wonderful of all is Barney's pure unadulterated love for his stepmother. He adores Clair with all his heart and constantly fears that she'll die in childbirth just as his mother did. Most of the tension that comes from this book is based on characters keeping secrets from other characters because they don't want to hurt them. Fortunately, everything gets patched up beautifully by the end.

If you'd like a book for your kid that's slightly more advanced than the average "Super Diaper Baby" tale, try "The Haunting" out on them. Not only is it written with clarity and precision but it's a great story about ghosts, magicians, and the dangers of stifling what you really are inside. If you want an open-minded book that believes that people should be themselves, if in moderation, "The Haunting" is for you. Another Margaret Mahy creation that'll blow you away.

Editorial Review:

After a shy and rather withdrawn eight-year-old begins receiving frightening supernatural images and messages, he learns about a family legacy which could be considered a curse or a rare gift.

A Lion in the Meadow

Margaret Mahy

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By: Overlook Juvenile
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Exciting and different 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

A wonderful story for children of all ages, it encourages the imagination, while displaying wonderful pictures, supported by clear text. As an adult reading it to their child, it brings out the child in you and in doing so brings you closer to your child. My son and I found it very interactive, we added much of our own storylines and enjoyed reading it ever night.

a good book for young lion lovers 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

My mum used to read this book to my brother and I when we were kids and I remember it being a firm favourite of his. This version has different illustrations to those in the one that we used to have but my own 3yo daughter (a lion lover) is as entranced with the story as my brother used to be. I think the new illustrations are great too and has a lovely message about the power of imagination. As for the "jarringly British dialogue", this book is actually from New Zealand not UK. However, I do agree that the text is a bit funny at times but it doesn't seem to bother my daughter at all (who can recite most of the dialogue off by heart after numerous readings of this book).

Editorial Review:

Mother didn't believe the little boy's tales about a dragon and lion in the meadow, but to the boy the creatures were very real.

Down the Back of the Chair

Margaret Mahy

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

A funny fantasy of a simple chair's riches 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Kids ages 4-7 will welcome another Mahy presentation: here a read-aloud story about a father who's lost his car keys. A frantic search leads a child to suggest the back of the chair - from whence all wonderful and amazing lost items are found. A fun rhyming text blends with fine drawings in a funny fantasy of a simple chair's riches.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

You never know what might turn up! 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Really fun book for kids (and adults) to read..some far out things are recovered "in the chair"!! Outlandish, but truly interesting book!

Very clever and amusing book! 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

My family loves this book - it is unique and fun to read. Great pictures and the rhyming text is very clever. I highly recommend it.

Editorial Review:

When Dad loses his car keys, little Mary suggests they might be down the back of the chair. Join in the fun as Dad begins the search, finding everything from a hairy string to a diamond ring—and much, much more! Could the solution to all the family's problems be down the back of the chair?

A lively rhyming text and quirky art come together in this visual explosion of fun and imagination.

The Great White Man-eating Shark (Picture Puffin Story Books)

Margaret Mahy

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By: Puffin Books
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Great book - not too frightening, good moral 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

My son likes scary things, but gets frightened by most! He loves this book because it features a (not-too) scary shark and a (not-too) scary situation. Norvin, a boy who looks amazingly like a shark, learns the hard way not to 'cry wolf' -- or, in this case, 'cry shark'! Adult-ish humor included for those reading to the little ones -- I love this book.

Wonderful (and not too scary!) book for all to enjoy 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

My twins (almost 5 years old) absolutely love this book. They are shark-fanatics, and the cautionary tale of the main character teaches a valuable lesson as well as entertains with delightful illustrations and story line. Mom and Dad thoroughly enjoy this book as well!