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The Magician's Heart
88 pages, Paperback
First published June 24, 1912
About the author
E. Nesbit
1,044 books1,010 followers
Edith Nesbit
(married name Edith Bland; 15 August 1858 – 4 May 1924) was an English author and poet; she published her books for children 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 socialist organisation later connected to the Labour Party.
Edith Nesbit was born in Kennington, Surrey, the daughter of agricultural chemist and schoolmaster John Collis Nesbit. The death of her father when she was four and the continuing ill health of her sister meant that Nesbit had a transitory childhood, her family moving across Europe in search of healthy climates only to return to England for financial reasons. Nesbit therefore spent her childhood attaining an education from whatever sources were available—local grammars, the occasional boarding school but mainly through reading.
At 17 her family finally settled in London and aged 19, Nesbit met Hubert Bland, a political activist and writer. They became lovers and when Nesbit found she was pregnant they became engaged, marrying in April 1880. After this scandalous (for Victorian society) beginning, the marriage would be an unconventional one. Initially, the couple lived separately—Nesbit with her family and Bland with his mother and her live-in companion Maggie Doran.
Initially, Edith Nesbit books were novels meant for adults, including The Prophet's Mantle (1885) and The Marden Mystery (1896) about the early days of the socialist movement. Written under the pen name of her third child 'Fabian Bland', these books were not successful. Nesbit generated an income for the family by lecturing around the country on socialism and through her journalism (she was editor of the Fabian Society's journal, Today).
In 1899 she had published The Adventures of the Treasure Seekers to great acclaim.
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 socialist organisation later connected to the Labour Party.
Edith Nesbit was born in Kennington, Surrey, the daughter of agricultural chemist and schoolmaster John Collis Nesbit. The death of her father when she was four and the continuing ill health of her sister meant that Nesbit had a transitory childhood, her family moving across Europe in search of healthy climates only to return to England for financial reasons. Nesbit therefore spent her childhood attaining an education from whatever sources were available—local grammars, the occasional boarding school but mainly through reading.
At 17 her family finally settled in London and aged 19, Nesbit met Hubert Bland, a political activist and writer. They became lovers and when Nesbit found she was pregnant they became engaged, marrying in April 1880. After this scandalous (for Victorian society) beginning, the marriage would be an unconventional one. Initially, the couple lived separately—Nesbit with her family and Bland with his mother and her live-in companion Maggie Doran.
Initially, Edith Nesbit books were novels meant for adults, including The Prophet's Mantle (1885) and The Marden Mystery (1896) about the early days of the socialist movement. Written under the pen name of her third child 'Fabian Bland', these books were not successful. Nesbit generated an income for the family by lecturing around the country on socialism and through her journalism (she was editor of the Fabian Society's journal, Today).
In 1899 she had published The Adventures of the Treasure Seekers to great acclaim.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
August 23, 2018
Listened to it via the Public Domain Theater podcast. Even if I hadn't, I would have found it funny.
September 25, 2020
It is 2020 as I write this review. We are at the end (crosses all fingers for the deepest of wishes) of the Trump era. I've thought of this short book frequently during the last four years. Why? In the book there is "an incredibly nasty person" with a lot of power. And at the end of the book...
Note: I usually give stars based on my subjective experience of the book at the time I read it... that would be between a 3 and a 4. "I liked it" to "I liked it a lot" But I'm giving this book bonus stars for the imagery which has stuck with me so strongly.
Note: I usually give stars based on my subjective experience of the book at the time I read it... that would be between a 3 and a 4. "I liked it" to "I liked it a lot" But I'm giving this book bonus stars for the imagery which has stuck with me so strongly.
March 18, 2018
Great pictures. A good book for someone who is just getting the hang of reading for themselves. Good story as well.
November 14, 2018
As read by Public Domain Theater
collected
December 2, 2020read in The Magic World
August 16, 2024
A magical tale which barrels along at speed and ends very satisfactorily. I enjoyed it.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews