Five Children and It (Five Children, #1)

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Five Children and It (Five Children #1)

3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 · rating details · 7,801 ratings · 319 reviews

The five children find a cantankerous sand fairy or 'psammead' in a gravel pit. Every day 'It' will grant each of them a wish that lasts until sunset, often with disastrous consequences. Five Children and It was first published in 1902, and it has remained in print ever since. The Introduction to this edition examines Nesbit's life and her reading, showing how she was pois...more

Paperback, 237 pages

Published December 1st 1996 by Puffin (first published 1902)

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Feb 09, 2012 Kwoomac rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, brit-lit, childrens, fantasy, fast-read, not-just-for-kids, reviewed

This novel was written in 1902. The author Edith Nesbit tells the story of five children (obviously) who come across a psammead, a sand fairy, while playing in a deserted gravel pit. This is one of the earliest examples of children left on their own who then have great adventures. Tha family goes to a house in the country on holiday when their father is called back to work and their mother leaves them to take care of her own sick mother. The children are basically on their own, minimally supervi...more

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Apr 25, 2010 Manny rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: children, well-i-think-its-funny

Somehow I missed reading Five Children and It when I was a child myself, so when I saw a copy at a yard sale I had to buy it. It only cost 10p, and the little girl who sold it to me looked rather like an E. Nesbit heroine, very serious, with huge dark eyes. The plot is a variant on "be careful what you wish for", one of her favourite themes. Some of the episodes are excellent, and it's full of delightful asides. But the construction is rather loose, and the ending is weak. I think she was dissat...more

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Dec 06, 2012 Tracey rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audio

Review purely for the Librivox edition of Five Children and It - I love the book, but this was awful. Various narrators - unfortunately un-listen-to-able. How can you read Five Children and It and not be able to pronounce "Anthea" and "Psammead"??

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Aug 01, 2008 Margaret rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: brit-lit, childhood-standouts, magic-myth-fantasy

Nesbit is the great-grandma of pretty nearly all the children's fantasy books we love, the first author to write really wittily for kids and without condescending to them, and the originator of the basic structure that carries on through C.S. Lewis and Edward Eager and even in a way Jo Rowling: four children, usually siblings or cousins but sometimes friends, stumble on a magical something that leads them into a series of fantastic adventures and important discoveries (gently conveyed) about the...more Nesbit is the great-grandma of pretty nearly all the children's fantasy books we love, the first author to write really wittily for kids and without condescending to them, and the originator of the basic structure that carries on through C.S. Lewis and Edward Eager and even in a way Jo Rowling: four children, usually siblings or cousins but sometimes friends, stumble on a magical something that leads them into a series of fantastic adventures and important discoveries (gently conveyed) about the big issues of life. Her books have a lovely period feel, not unlike the opening pages of Alice in Wonderland, tempered by Nesbit's practical sensibility about the real world and her sardonic sense of humor, which makes the books a very enjoyable read for adults as well as great read-alouds.

In this story, written in 1902, the magical something is a Psammead, a grumpy Persian sand fairy that looks something like a large tubby rodent with eyes on the end of stalks. The Psammead is compelled to grant its finders one wish per day, which the children are initially thrilled about, but they soon discover that wishes are chancy things and the Psammead perversely literal in granting them, with often unlooked for and unideal consequences. There are two sequels, THE PHOENIX AND THE CARPET, written in 1904 and my personal favorite (I always hear John Gielgud's voice coming out of the Phoenix) and THE STORY OF THE AMULET (1906).

Theatre folks may be interested to know that Nesbit was Noel Coward's favorite writer; there was a copy of THE ENCHANTED CASTLE on his bedside table at Firefly when he died. "Her books," he wrote, "have meant a very great deal to me, not only when I was a little boy of nine and onwards, but right up to the present day. I have re-read them each at least twenty times....She had an economy of phrase, and an unequalled talent for evoking hot summer days in the English countryside." His favorites? FIVE CHILDREN AND IT, THE PHOENIX AND THE CARPET, THE HOUSE OF ARDEN, THE ENCHANTED CASTLE, THE WONDERFUL GARDEN, and the Bastable series.

The Brits did a film adaptation in 2004, somewhat different to the book in the way the story gets launched, with Freddie Highmore leading the juvenile cast, and Tara Fitzgerald, Alex Jennings, Zoe Wanamaker and Kenneth Branagh as the adults. In a stroke of total casting genius, the voice of the Psammead is provided by Eddie Izzard.(less)

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Apr 09, 2013 Gale rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s-classics, fantasy-young-adult

“Be careful what you wish for…!”

Four children in turn-of the century England (and a two year old baby called the Lamb) make the discovery of an unusual creature in a sand pit: the Psammead, or Sand Fairy. Of course no adult would believe in It’s existence or its super-magical ability to grant wishes--that is, one wish per day, which lasts until sundown. While the children’s parents are on an extended visit to an ailing grandparent, the kids are left in the care of Martha and the Cook at their...more

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Oct 26, 2012 Sally rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobooks, ebook

This is an age-old fable tale of "be careful what you wish for," told in a way that is entirely suitable for children to read or have read to them. I would suggest the appropriate audience age would be 6-11 or 12. It is not heavy reading and only about 2 hours long (audiobook), but it is an entertaining tale even some adults might enjoy. I think books of this sort appeal to children, or the adult who remembers childhood, because the main characters are children themselves. The way the story chil...more

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Jul 29, 2012 Leslie rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s-books

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Pretty much like the Enchanted Castle: interesting, then tiresome, and then offensive. 4 children (the 5th child is the baby) discover a sand fairy while on vacation. Naturally the sand fairy grants wishes and agrees to giving them one wish a day; the intriguing part is that the wish will only last until sunset. Their parents are both gone on errands and they are left in the dubiously capable hands of their housekeeper for weeks.

The usual be-careful-what-you-wish-for message is there and their...more Pretty much like the Enchanted Castle: interesting, then tiresome, and then offensive. 4 children (the 5th child is the baby) discover a sand fairy while on vacation. Naturally the sand fairy grants wishes and agrees to giving them one wish a day; the intriguing part is that the wish will only last until sunset. Their parents are both gone on errands and they are left in the dubiously capable hands of their housekeeper for weeks.

The usual be-careful-what-you-wish-for message is there and their first few wishes are actually interesting. The first is to be as beautiful as the day, but they are so beautiful that they are unrecognizable to their maid and she refuses to give them dinner. The second wish is for a lot of gold, but because they are children and the gold coins aren't British currency almost no shops accept them and they have to spend their own money. The third wish is for wings and then after that it is downhill.

This book would have been three stars were it not for the following:

"Servants do like taking babies to see their relations," Cyril said; "I've noticed it before—especially in their best clothes." "I expect they pretend they're their own babies, and that they're not servants at all, but married to noble dukes of high degree, and they say the babies are the little dukes and duchesses," Jane suggested dreamily, taking more marmalade. "I expect that's what Martha'll say to her cousin. She'll enjoy herself most frightfully."

Then there is the chapter titled "Scalps" where one of the children wishes for there to be "red Indians" in England.

"The real Indians outside seem to be brownish," said Robert hastily. "I think we ought to be really red—it's sort of superior to have a red skin, if you are one." The red ochre cook uses for the kitchen bricks seemed to be about the reddest thing in the house. The children mixed some in a saucer with milk, as they had seen cook do for the kitchen floor. Then they carefully painted each other's faces and hands with it, till they were quite as red as any Red Indian need be—if not redder.

But wait there's more. To appreciate (not the right word) this you need to know that the children were wearing make-shift wigs they made out of strips of black cloth:

Next moment each child was seized by an Indian; each closed its eyes and tried not to scream. They waited for the sharp agony of the knife. It did not come. Next moment they were released, and fell in a trembling heap. Their heads did not hurt at all. They only felt strangely cool! Wild war-whoops rang in their ears. When they ventured to open their eyes they saw four of their foes dancing round them with wild leaps and screams, and each of the four brandished in his hand a scalp of long flowing black hair. They put their hands to their heads—their own scalps were safe! The poor untutored savages had indeed scalped the children. But they had only, so to speak, scalped them of the black calico ringlets!

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Apr 14, 2012 Martha rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: elementary school-age kids

Shelves: 2012, children, fiction, reviews

Good late Victorian fun. You lose something when you read a children's book for the first time as an adult. But I would have liked this as a kid although it doesn't have the kind of compelling characters that make you read a book over and over again--like Alice or Dr. Dolittle. So it's lighter weight, a fairy tale with early 20th-century English schoolboy speak. And the omniscient narrator gets a bit arch at times.

Having the knights' equipment come from different historical periods b/c the chil...more

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Apr 08, 2012 Lucinda rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a heartwarming story that never fails to bring a smile to my face, and it is something that i love as much now as i did when i was a child. It is set during the second world war where five children are sent to relatives in the countryside, and there they encounter a strange and magical creature. This is a story that is centered around friendship and love and one that is beautifully touching and emotive, which will really touch your heart. The saying "be careful what you wish for" is the...more This is a heartwarming story that never fails to bring a smile to my face, and it is something that i love as much now as i did when i was a child. It is set during the second world war where five children are sent to relatives in the countryside, and there they encounter a strange and magical creature. This is a story that is centered around friendship and love and one that is beautifully touching and emotive, which will really touch your heart. The saying "be careful what you wish for" is the central focus point and how the children learn what is important within life; family & love. It is a strong reminder to all readers both young and old of the importance and value of family and friends, and a reminder of the insignificance of material things such as wealth and personal possesions. One can become greedy or blind to what is important and this little childrens book certainly emphasises the meaning within life, which is thought provoking & very truth drawing. It is also a tale that is centered around the war and how it effected the loved ones of the soldiers, as in the case of the father & one of his sons who share a close and strong bond. It really highlights the impact that the war had on the people and citizens of England and what impact it created which only makes you more apreciative of the people that surround you. I was mesmirised by the strange creature and how emotionally vulnerable it was, as it gave out wishes in exchange for the company that it so desired and to get people to like it, which sends a clear message to reader's that one cannot buy love or friendship. This is more than just a mere children's story as it covers very poinant and meaningful issues, and is something that anyone at any age can empathise with and easily relate to. Life can be hard and at times things do not always seem fair or just, but if you are kindhearted, generous and loving then you will never be unhappy or want for anything. This story was a childhood favourite and it is something that i certainly will treasure for years to come. Full of action and drama, humor and suspense this is a story that will make you laugh and cry - magical & utterly spellbinding. (less)

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Mar 22, 2012 Beth Bonini rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: children-s-book-club

This is basically a version of the "three foolish wishes" folktale, with some original elaboration. One of the original bits is that Edith Nesbit featured a family of five children (two boys, two girls and a toddler) instead of the orphan or only child more common in children's fantasy books of the time. Nesbit was a hugely successful children's writer in the early 20th century, and her novels impacted most of the writers who came after her. Indeed, I immediately thought of Enid Blyton -- and he...more

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Oct 13, 2011 Chris rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, j, light, not-graphic, life

If you could have anything you wanted, what would it be? Quickly now, off the top of your head. You get one wish, immediately. What is it?

Okay, now that you’ve made your wish, think it through very carefully and try to imagine all the ways it might go wrong. Because your wish won’t turn out the way that you think. Wishes never do, you know. The creature granting the wish always finds a way to twist your words so they mean something a bit different than you thought, people will react to your chan...more If you could have anything you wanted, what would it be? Quickly now, off the top of your head. You get one wish, immediately. What is it?

Okay, now that you’ve made your wish, think it through very carefully and try to imagine all the ways it might go wrong. Because your wish won’t turn out the way that you think. Wishes never do, you know. The creature granting the wish always finds a way to twist your words so they mean something a bit different than you thought, people will react to your changed state of affairs in ways you haven’t predicted, and there will be repercussions you haven’t yet imagined. So think hard about your wish. How might it go wrong?

That’s the tale in this book. Four siblings (and their baby brother) find a fairy and learn the hard way that having your wishes come true isn’t everything it’s cracked up to be. The Psammead is bound to grant them one wish a day, but the wishes always end with nightfall and none of them work as hoped. Each time the children try to plan carefully, but only end up getting themselves (and others) into trouble.

While you may be familiar with this kind of story, realize that this one was written over a hundred years ago by one of the earliest authors who wrote books for children. In some ways it’s a bit old fashioned, but her witty, sometimes snarky writing certainly portrays characters that ring true regardless of place or time. So true, in fact, that part of the fun is slapping your forehead at how dumb they are with their wishes and imagining how you might do better. Could you? Try this enjoyable read and find out.

The house was deep in the country, with no other house in sight, and the children had been in London for two years, without so much as once going to the seaside even for a day by an excursion train, and so the White House seemed to them a sort of fairy palace set down in an earthly paradise. For London is like prison for children, especially if their relations are not rich.

Of course there are the shops and the theatres, and Maskelyne and Cook’s, and things, but if your people are rather poor you don’t get taken to the theatres, and you can’t buy things out of the shops; and London has none of those nice things that children may play with without hurting the things or themselves--such as trees and sand and woods and waters. And nearly everything in London is the wrong sort of shape--all straight lines and flat streets, instead of being all sorts of odd shapes, as things are in the country. Trees are all different, as you know, and I am sure some tiresome person must have told you that there are no two blades of grass exactly alike. But in streets where the blades of grass don’t grow, everything is like everything else. This is why so many children who live in towns are so extremely naughty. They do not know what is the matter with them, and no more do their fathers and mothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, tutors, governesses, and nurses; but I know. And so do you now. Children in the country are naughty sometimes, too, but that is for quite different reasons. . . .

The best part of it all was that there were no rules about not going to places and not doing things. In London almost everything is labeled “You mustn’t touch,” and though the label is invisible it’s just as bad, because you know it’s there, or if you don’t you jolly soon get told.(less)

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Jul 19, 2010 Krista rated it 3 of 5 stars

Nesbit is the grandmother of children's fantasy literature. Written in 1902, Five Children and It can be considered to have inspired many who came later, including Edward Eager, whose Tales of Magic series owes a great debt to Nesbit (this Eager freely admits)

The book shows its age but it is much more accessible than the other books I've read that she penned. Five siblings find a creature who will grant one wish a day and madcap hilarity ensues, replete with political incorrectness and reference...more Nesbit is the grandmother of children's fantasy literature. Written in 1902, Five Children and It can be considered to have inspired many who came later, including Edward Eager, whose Tales of Magic series owes a great debt to Nesbit (this Eager freely admits)

The book shows its age but it is much more accessible than the other books I've read that she penned. Five siblings find a creature who will grant one wish a day and madcap hilarity ensues, replete with political incorrectness and references that are not now common knowledge. None of this gets in the way of enjoyment, however (though knowledge that the word "slut" was more commonly used to mean "slatternly" and "lazy" in the early 20th century might be useful)

Nesbit's voice is entertaining, whimsical and slightly snide. For example, when the children meet the creature it introduces itself as a "Psammead." The creature says, "You mean to tell me seriously you don't know a Psammead when you see one?" "A Sammyadd? That's Greek to me," says one of the children. "So it is to everyone," said the creature sharply.

She also launches into off-subject asides that are either tiresome or diverting, depending on one's mood at the time. For example;

Everyone began to talk at once. If you had been there you could not possibly have made head or tail of the talk, but these children were used to talking 'by fours', as soldiers march, and each of them could say what it had to say quite comfortably, and listen to the agreeable sound of its own voice, and at the same time have three-quarters of two sharp ears to spare for listening to what the others said. That is an easy example in multiplication of vulgar fractions, but, as I daresay you can't do even that, I won't ask you to tell me whether 3/4 x 2 = 1 and 1/2, but I will ask you to believe me that this was the amount of ear each child was able to lend to the others. Lending ears was common in Roman times, as we learn from Shakespeare; but I fear I am getting too instructive.

Overall, a lovely dalliance.

And, just because I'm also currently reading Narnia, I must express my frustration with the hold that the series has over children's literature. In the Nesbit biography on the front flap, Nesbit is described thusly; "One of her most admired abilities as a writer is the combination - often with more than a pinch of humour - of a real-life situation with elements of magical fantasy. Five Children and It is perhaps the most famous of her books to display this Narnia-like combination."

Do be reminded that Five Children and It was published starting in 1901. Lewis didn't start the Narnia series until 1949. If anything, the Narnia series displays a Nesbit-like combination.

That is all. As you were.
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Jul 24, 2009 Shel added it

Nesbit, E. (2004). Five Children and It. New York: Puffin Books.

9780140367355

Five children (thus the first part of the title of this book—although one of the five kids is a baby and is not involved in all of the events) leave their London home with their mother visit the countryside for a week. Within hours of their arrival they discover an ancient sand fairy living in a gravel-pit. The grumpy fairy grants the children one wish each day. The catch? The wishes only last one day and the kids never...more

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Jan 29, 2010 Xenophon Hendrix rated it 4 of 5 stars

The book is both funny and witty. I wish I had read it when I was a child. The dialog is sharp, and except for one chapter, all of the human characters behave in realistic ways.

I wish I could give the book extra points for the deeply politically incorrect chapter featuring American Indians, but alas, it is the only silly chapter in the book. I despise PC as much as the next amateur subversive, but political incorrectness should be reserved for speaking truth. This chapter, unfortunately, display...more

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Feb 11, 2012 Judy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: classic children's books lovers

Recommended to Judy by: Dan

Shelves: childrens, classics, fiction, 2012-reads

My brother pawned this book off on me so I felt obligated to read it. Considering he and I have recently divergent tastes in books I didn't expect much, but surprise! it turned out to be a delightful book.

This chapter book centers around five children staying with their caring but unimaginative housekeeper at a country house near a sand pit. The children discover a grumpy psammead (sand fairy) who grants them a wish a day. Of course, this results in good lessons, predicaments and missed suppers....more

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Nov 06, 2009 Bryn rated it 3 of 5 stars

I loved E Nesbit as a child, I read everything of hers I could get my hands on. This was a particular favorite. So, looking for things to read to my son, I returned with great delight and enthusiasm. And was horribly disappointed.

The story premis and remains sois pleasing - the sand fairy grants wishes, the children learn from their wishes about what is important to them. But, going back as an adult reader, the whole thing seems so judgemental and patronising, laced with the suggestion that you...more

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May 20, 2012 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars

Free to download, and recommended by J. K. Rowling, this seemed like a simple diversion while I waited for the book I really wanted to read. And, mostly, it was. The story of 5 Victorian siblings who find a wish-granting fairy felt very familiar and generally sweet. You already know how things will turn out. "Be careful what you wish for." In a world populated by a maid, nurse, cook... yes, overly privileged children who are simply wishing for something to pass the time. Other than the classicis...more

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Jan 23, 2010 Maria rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult-n-z

I must have gotten this on a trip to Spain because there is a sticker on the back that says it cost just over 5 pesetas and is from an English bookshop. The American price is just over $2 which is shocking to me given today's prices. I must be getting old.

I really want to give this book 2.5 stars because there are things I really like about it but then lots of stuff that is just so-so. Perhaps my favorite part of the book is the historical aspect, the things the children wore, the expected stand...more

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Apr 10, 2011 Debra rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: juvenile

What would you wish for if you could have one wish granted every day? Five siblings--well, really only four of five because "Lamb" is too young--in E. Nesbit's Five Children and It discover that deciding what to wish for is only the beginning of their troubles. When they uncover a sand fairy who promises to grant them a wish a day, "careful what you wish for" becomes a much more colorful aphorism.

Somehow, I had not read E. Nesbit's work before, and I am not familiar with turn-of-the-20th-Century...more

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Dec 28, 2011 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, nesbit

When the five children in this story ask what 'It' is, and It tells them it is a Psammead, the immediate comment is the stock phrase "It's all Greek to me." And of course that is the point: Psammead would be Greek for 'sand fairy', which is what It is.

This is perhaps a clear indication that Nesbit was writing not just for children but also for adults, herself included, the kind of educated middleclass adults alive at the tail-end of Victorian Britain. Which is a point that many modern-day reade...more When the five children in this story ask what 'It' is, and It tells them it is a Psammead, the immediate comment is the stock phrase "It's all Greek to me." And of course that is the point: Psammead would be Greek for 'sand fairy', which is what It is.

This is perhaps a clear indication that Nesbit was writing not just for children but also for adults, herself included, the kind of educated middleclass adults alive at the tail-end of Victorian Britain. Which is a point that many modern-day readers often miss, especially those that criticise the chapter on American Indians for not being politically correct (it was published in 1902, when such stereotypes were perpetuated, and which Nesbit was satirising), or who chastise the author for speaking down to children (they clearly haven't read many of the contemporary morally-improving tomes for children, compared with which Nesbit's voice comes across as thoroughly modern in its understanding of sheltered bourgeois mentality and experience, not to mention sensitivity and sympathy).

Having risen to the defence of Nesbit, I have to say that I didn't find Five Children and It as captivating as I might have hoped, though it was rather better paced than her preceding titles centred on the Bastable children, The Treasure Seekers (1899) and The Wouldbegoods (1901). Originally appearing in installments (ideal for bedtime reading), the story follows the by now familiar pattern of a group of children who, despite often good intentions, find the outcomes not going the way they hoped. Unlike the Bastable children, this family (Cyril, Anthea, Robert and Jane, plus the baby Hilary they call 'Lamb') has its adventures spiced up by magic, provided by their wishes being granted by the creature they find in an old sand quarry.

To describe the adventures would be to lose any magic gained by reading the story, but of course the precise wishes, formulated through the distorting prisms of juvenile brains, are all granted in rather diverting ways. What I did find captivating, however, was the Psammead itself, not unsurprisingly a rather grumpy personnage considering not only its extreme age but also its constant disturbance by a bunch of kids. As a grumpy personnage muself (though not of a similar age) I thoroughly sympathised with its tic of having to grant whimsical wishes to all and sundry.

Whilst only slightly bemused by its command of English, I was rather more irritated by its equally whimsical portrayal by more recent book cover designers and film makers, in defiance of Nesbit's very clear description: it had eyes ... on long horns like a snail’s eyes, and it could move them in and out like telescopes, and ears like a bat’s ears, and its tubby body was shaped like a spider’s and covered with thick soft fur; its legs and arms were furry too, and it had hands and feet like a monkey’s, not to mention rat-like whiskers. (less)

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Jan 29, 2011 Travis rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sf-fantasy

Odd, but entertaining children's book about five siblings that discover a 'sand fairy' near their summer home and are given a wish a day.

Unfortunately, none of the wishes go as the kids hope and quite a few cause more trouble then they solve.

What makes this book a step above the usual kids fantasy books from the turn of the century is a balance of fun fantasy elements and cynicism. It's a bit like the Mary Poppins books, in that the people in the book act very real, and while there are fantastic...more

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Jul 28, 2011 dragonhelmuk added it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Apr 06, 2009 Stephanie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Kids might enjoy comparing the contemporary series The Spiderwick Chronicles to this obvious predecessor, which also involves a group of siblings who find a grumpy magical being. Four British children (and their baby brother) uncover a Sand-fairy who grants wishes that only last a day. This time constraint is welcome when they wish to live in a besieged castle, for example, but causes problems when their wished-for wings vanish and they're stranded on top of a building. Published in 1902, the bo...more

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Nov 27, 2012 Valerie added it · review of another edition

My copy of this edition is evidently an earlier printing, as it's from 1986.

The Psammead (the 'it' of the title) longs for 'good old days' which are, frankly, purely imaginary. The attempt to explain away fossils as petrifications of ancient wishes is just silly.

But the silliness becomes a springboard for 'modern' fantasies. But the 'modern' in case is Edwardian (NOT 'Victorian'. Victoria died in very early 1901) middle class children.

Before the development of a lot of labor-saving devices, serv...more

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Shelli Don't you think your complaints are more suited to straight (i.e. thoroughly researched, purporting-to-be-accurate) historical fiction rather than to...more Don't you think your complaints are more suited to straight (i.e. thoroughly researched, purporting-to-be-accurate) historical fiction rather than to a children's *fantasy*?

To wit, your longish review mentions nothing about plot development, whether or not you were transported by the narrative, themes, characters/characterizations, the author's writing style or ability, or anything else to do with the *story*. Instead, you take issue with (and in fact only report on) that:

~ the psammead (a completely fictional, not to mention fantastical creature) being fundamentally surly and non-literal (that him telling the children that fossils are ancient wishes is "silly", that he should have acted as a sensible mentor to the children as opposed to acting like a just-woken-up and annoyed fairy) is somehow unbelievable and inappropriate. If he'd popped out of the sand, delivered a PSA on staying in school and not doing drugs, it would have made for a short and boring book, no?

~ the book is mistaken (by who? Surely not the author!) for Victorian instead of Edwardian.

~ that the people the children meet are historically-accurate composites instead of "real" people.

~ that *children* put in the rather novel situation of having unlimited wishes come up with exciting, over-the-top adventures. Since the wishes expire, what are they supposed to wish for, trust funds? Besides, even as an adult, I'm pretty sure even I wouldn't have been able to resist making one of them being able to fly!

~ that "a lot of the people encountered by the children in the course of the wishes are purely fictional" and that the author was "fictionalized heavily" and appeared to know she was writing a fantasy. I'm confused – are these things even meant to be criticisms?

Since you did not provide a star review, I have only your review on which the infer your opinion of this book, which does not make it sound favorable. Perhaps fantasy is not the genre for you, but still, don't you think you're honing in on details that are not particularly germane to the story?(less)
Apr 06, 2013 11:56pm

Valerie No, I don't. The criticisms of fantasy are NOT independent of the social constraints of characters and authors. Who thinks the book is a Victorian boo...more No, I don't. The criticisms of fantasy are NOT independent of the social constraints of characters and authors. Who thinks the book is a Victorian book? Very nearly every one of the other reviewers of the book. I don't write reviews without consulting how other people are responding, to get a feel for what's already known.

It seems to me that the counterargument is a case of Maria's Law: Never argue probability with an eight-foot tall canary. But while it's necessary to use different standards for fantasy, these need NOT be different standards of ethics and character. Pace Jason Fox of Foxtrot, swamp monsters do in FACT need motivation, UNLESS they're immune to the laws of conservation of energy and cause and effect.

Indeed, the author herself feels quite free to critique the wisdom of the children's decisions, as when she points out that if they'd just requested a few pocketfuls of money (rather than 'wealth beyond the dreams of avarice', translated into a quarry full of gold), they'd have gotten things more conducive to their 'wealth', which is to say, their well-being.

I don't assign 'stars' to ANYTHING, because I don't believe one can assign worth on a simplistic five-point scale. I feel the same way about 'achievement tests', credit ratings, and any other attempt to 'simplify' the irreducibly complex.

If I didn't like a book, I wouldn't review it, or I would simply do so to warn people that I think something is unsalvageably awful, and not worth even picking up. If I review something in detail, it's because I take it seriously enough to deal with its successes AND its flaws. In general, I agree with Nesbit on a great many issues. I take up and explain the matters I disagree with--such as the destructive argument (too often repeated) that there's nothing to be gained by crying over one'a griefs and losses. But if I hadn't found most of the story worthwhile, I wouldn't have bothered.

I don't object to people disagreeing with me. But I do object to being told I must either accept something whole--or reject the lot.(less)
Apr 07, 2013 04:46am

Jun 29, 2011 Zelda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This charming classic tale of five spunky British children who stumble upon a wish-granting sand fairy will not only look splendid on your bookshelf but it will make Ambien seem like some kind of 12-horse powered, super upper by comparison. By that I mean, oh my gaw, please kill me before I have to read one more word of this.

But my kids loved it! Here's why: I would literally doze off mid-sentence while I was reading it aloud to them. But I would still be reading and my garbled sentence would ma...more

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Jun 30, 2011 Isabel rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-to-elf, novel, childrens, fantasy

So far, I'm not blown away by this one. The four English children (plus Baby) living in the country after leaving London are a far cry from the Pevinses of Narnia. It's hard for me to distinguish between one child and another.

The conspiring tone of the narrator, who understands children as well as children do, is a little annoying. The rhythm of the writing doesn't lend itself to reading aloud, but maybe that's because I don't have an English accent (?). Anyway, I'm a bit disappointed so far. I...more

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Feb 01, 2013 Lisa Cox rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've only discovered the works of Edith Nesbit in my later years. I'm not sure I could have appreciated them as a younger reader. There is the expected old-world feel to the writing, and I'm sure modern audiences may scoff, but I find myself looking forward to the hidden humor that sometimes makes me snort tea out my nose. The fairy stories and the adventures of the children are light and entertaining, but my favorite thing about this book is the unexpected humor delivered in that wide-eyed, inn...more

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Feb 16, 2011 Hillary rated it 3 of 5 stars

Recommended to Hillary by: C. S. Lewis

From my understanding, this book is one of the first of its kind. Until Nesbit's story, characters often went out to find adventure. Nesbit decided to bring the adventure to the children. A small pioneering effort in light of today, but to think of what all these ideas have lead to since then! This form of story has been expounded on in every possible way since Nesbit.

The chapters were long and a little extra effort was exerted to get through them, but by the time each chapter was done, I found...more

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Feb 19, 2009 Carmine rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: family read aloud, fantasy lovers

Shelves: juvenile-fiction, fantasy, family

Loved it. The influence on Edward Eager is very clear. Stories where children get wishes and they always go awry- right up my alley. In this case an irritable sand fairy promises them one wish per day and, of course, they always backfire. Luckily the wish undoes itself at sunset and all is restored. The children bicker and banter wittily and get into scrapes- help! our wings have disappeared and we are stuck in the belfry.

One moment of pause- this was written in 1902. The attitudes of colonial E...more

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Nov 14, 2010 Michele Velthuizen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Interest level: 5th +
Reading level: medium
Genre: fantasy, humor, classics, fairies, sand fairies

This book was written over 100 years ago, so you'll notice that the language a bit old-fashioned; nevertheless it's a timeless story about five children who discover a creature - a Psammead (an ancient odd-looking sand fairy) - that grants them a wish a day that lasts until sunset. But it's a hard to think of sensible wishes so the children soon find out that every wish they ask for ends up in disaste...more

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About E. Nesbit

Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; 15 August 1858 – 4 May 1924) was an English author and poet whose children's works were published under the name of E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on over 60 books of fiction for children, several of which have been adapted for film and television. She was also a political activist and co-founded the Fabian Society, a precursor to the modern Labour Par...more

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Books by E. Nesbit

The Phoenix and the Carpet (Five Children, #2)

The Enchanted Castle & Five Children and It

The Story of the Treasure Seekers (Bastable Children, #1)

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