If you liked Half Magic…
Reader Ben M. asked me to recommend books for those who like Edward Eager’s wonderful Half Magic (1954). Half Magic is a fantastical and funny book about four ordinary siblings who find a magic charm. Finally, their lives can be like the ones they read about in books! Except the charm’s magic only works by halves. If you wish to travel somewhere, the magic will take you halfway there. If you wish that something exciting, like a house fire, would happen, a play house catches fire.
If you haven’t read Magic by the Lake and other great volumes by Eager, start there. Then I have two categories of suggestions for you: a) great classic books and b) modern fun fantasies.
Five Children and It by E. Nesbit (1902)
The children in Half Magic are dedicated readers, and they love the books of E. Nesbit. In Five Children and It, siblings discover a sand fairy who can grant wishes that last a day. The wishes don’t go as planned and the adventure and comedy of the results makes for a great read.
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (1911)
One of the faves of my childhood, I loved the secrets and mystery of Mary Lennox’s life. She was probably the first “unlikable” heroine I encountered. She softens and blooms by the end of the book, growing as much as the garden she tends.
The Melendy Quartet series by Elizabeth Enright (started in 1941)
I find these books by Elizabeth Enright enchanting. Written in a similar style to Half Magic, they, too, involve a set of four siblings. In the first book, The Saturdays, the kids decide to pool their allowance each week and take turns choosing an extraordinary activity.
The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place series by Maryrose Wood (2009)
These books about a governess and her charges — three children who were raised by wolves — frequently have me laughing out loud. The howling fun would appeal to any reader of Half Magic.
Upside-down Magic series by Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle, and Emily Jenkins (started in 2015)
Even schools for magic have a remedial class. At Dunwiddle Magic School, that’s the Upside-Down Magic class that everyone makes fun of. The students may not have the fancy, easy magic that their schoolmates enjoy, but they discover that wonky magic can sometimes have its benefits.
The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor by Shaenon K. Garrity and Christopher Baldwin (2021)
In this graphic novel, Haley is obsessed with gothic romance books. Her English teacher has to beg her to write an essay on anything other than Jane Eyre. Then on a dark and stormy night, she jumps into the water to save a man from drowning and wakes up to find herself in a castle out of a gothic romance!
A Taste of Magic by J. Elle (2022)
I was already a fan of Elle’s YA fantasy Wings of Ebony, and it was easy to love her MG debut A Taste of Magic. Kyana discovers that her family has a magical heritage and starts attending magic school. But when the school is in danger of closing, she will do anything to save it. She enters a cooking competition in the hopes of winning the prize money. But will magic and cooking mix?