The World's Worst Fairy Godmother

by Bruce Coville

A hapless fairy godmother faces her toughest assignment yet: a perfect little girl whom she must teach to be normal

Maybelle was only trying to help. Maybe that’s the problem—every time she tries to help, her magic makes things worse. This time, her spell was supposed to turn a frog into a prince, but instead it turned a princess into a frog! For more than a century, every spell she’s cast has backfired, and now her boss is fed up. She has one last chance to make things right—or she’ll lose her wings forever.
 
With the help of the legendary fairy godmother Edna Prim, Maybelle takes charge of a snooty young girl named Susan whose only problem is that she’s too perfect. Maybelle’s job is to help Susan learn to be a regular kid, but there’s a mischief-loving imp working against her. Saving Susan will take a new kind of spell—and a special brand of magic that only Maybelle has to offer.
 
This ebook features an illustrated personal history of Bruce Coville including rare images from the author’s collection.

Genres: Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Young Adult, Childrens, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Magic

128 pages, ebook

First published December 1, 1996

About the author

Bruce Coville was born in Syracuse, New York, in 1950. His family lived in farm territory, about twenty miles north of Syracuse. Bruce grew up around the corner from his grandparents' dairy farm, where he spent a great deal of time as a child, dodging cows and chores to the best of his ability. As a young reader he loved Mary Poppins and Dr. Dolittle, and still has fond memories of rising ahead of the rest of his family so he could huddle in a chair and read THE VOYAGES OF DR. DOLITTLE. He also read lots of things that people consider junk (Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, Tom Swift, and zillions of comic books). His only real regret is the time he spent watching television, when he could have been reading instead. (A mind is a terrible thing to waste!)

His first book, THE FOOLISH GIANT, was published in 1978. It was illustrated by his wife, Katherine, whom he had married in 1969. This was followed in 1979 by SARAH'S UNICORN, also illustrated by Katherine. After a long period of working separately, the Covilles began collaborating again with SPACE BRAT and GOBLINS IN THE CASTLE, both published in 1992.

Before getting published Bruce earned his living as a toymaker, a gravedigger, a cookware salesman, an assembly line worker, and finally as an elementary school teacher (second and fourth grades). He left teaching in 1981 to devote himself to becoming a full time writer - though it took another five years to achieve that goal!)

Bruce has published over 100 books, which have appeared in over a dozen countries around the world and sold more than sixteen million copies. Among his most popular titles are MY TEACHER IS AN ALIEN, INTO THE LAND OF THE UNICORNS, and THE MONSTER'S RING. In 2001 he founded Full Cast Audio, an audiobook company dedicated to creating unabridged, full cast recordings of the best in children's and young adult literature.

Reviews

[Becky]

I have been wanting to find this book for awhile, i read this back in 4th grade and never finished it. I really want to know what happens so altough its a kids book i have to finish reading it. From what i remember it had to be pretty darn good for me to remember it this long.

[Ellen Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the message of this story and the cute, clever details along the way!

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank god for ThriftBooks. This was my favorite book for a while when I was a kid and has been out of print since then. I got a copy and read it in an hour— It’s exactly as charming as I remember!

[Hannah Crossett · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fans of goofy mix-ups and ill-behaved children having magical experiences making them better people like in the books about Miss Piggle-Wiggle will love this book, too.

[Talie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Adorable fairytale for kids, a book that I remember fondly from my childhood. Reading as an adult...well, it's a little flat and basic, but still enjoyable.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly, I just couldn't continue with this. The story is only so-so, and the author tries way too hard to be cute and clever. The artwork is beautiful, but it is not enough to keep my 6yo and I interested. The 8yo, however, thinks this book is brilliant, so apparently the humor speaks to his little heart.... he wants to continue reading it on his own.

Edit: Ugh. My kids talked me into finishing this book. Granted, it did improve... a bit... but I still found it annoying. The boys, however, thought this was the funniest thing ever. Ergo, I upped it a star, from two to three... since they are the target audience, after all. Now, I just have to put up with them walking around the house giggling and shouting out, "I think I Loooo-oooo-vvvvve you!"

[Whittney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the way Bruce Coville adds folklore and myth into nearly every one of his books and always finds a way to highlight the goodness of the human spirit. His positive outlook on life and people is apparent in his characters, even some of the "bad" ones.

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'll SAY that I'm previewing this for Sam but really I was excited to find a Bruce Coville book that I hadn't read before. This was at a used book store and I was pretty excited.

***
He never lets me down. This was cute & sweet. I'm sure she will enjoy it as much as I did.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bruce Coville is a wonderful children's author of fantasy....this is not necessarilly my favorite of his, but the kids enjoy it a great deal.

[Esther · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely a younger elementary book. Still, very cute, and has a good theme of the importance of loving people over trying to be perfect.

[Rebekah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kind-of cute, but nothing special.

[R.K. Goff · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are only a few young reader authors that I totally trust and enjoy. And you know, Coville doesn't disappoint. A charming little read.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just a chance to see if it's something my students would like.

[Breanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was cute.

[Shani · Rating 4 out of 5]

The World's Worst Fairy Godmother was crazy cute. I'd buy it in a heart beat

[Deedee]

Lexile 570L

[Tamara]

World's worst book about the world's worst fairy godmother? Maybe. Or maybe I just didn't get it.

[Erin]

Cute, engaging story about the misadventures of a supposedly terrible fairy godmother. All is not what it appears to be. Appropriate for elementary age; my 4th grader loved it.

[Ilana Waters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved all the little twists and turns, and the way the characters' lives entwined with one another's. I guess I pretty much love Coville and everything he does. :-)

[Kathy Chung · Rating 4 out of 5]

a cheeky tale.

a simple and fast reads with a twist in the end. i love it

[Elise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I cannot remember anything of this book, but the fact that I really liked it.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really cute story about an unlucky fairy godmother. I highly recommend it.