Alison Of Arabia

Magic Attic Club #18

by Nina Alexander

Alison can hardly believe her own luck when she finds herself a princess in an Arabian palace with her very own genie and three wishes. Everything she's dreamed of can now come true, but deciding what she really wants isn't as easy as she thought. With the genie gone, is it too late to find her real wish?

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Fiction, Juvenile, Adventure

74 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Nina Alexander, born in 1942, is the author of many children's books, including books written for the Magic Attic Club series.

Reviews

[Library_Dweller89 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember this being one of my favorites from the series when I was younger and it really didn’t hold up. I feel like there are a lot of story flaws that don’t really make sense.

[Faith Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since I like Middle Eastern culture, I enjoyed "going" to Arabia with Alison. Several of the illustrations were impressive, or magical... just as the story is, quite literally!

However, while Alison is in Arabia, there's no conflict. I'm glad the book lacked the cliche Magic Attic Club subplot of spotting suspicious strangers, finding out what they're doing, and trying to defeat them (look at Keisha's Mystery Maze or Megan in Ancient Greece, for example), but it didn't have anything else, other than being spoiled as a princess. Aside from the conflict at home, a plot was barely there. Also, I am not a fan of Alison's personality traits, such as being overconfident and tomboyish--I much prefer quiet, thoughtful Heather or prudent, observant Keisha.

As expected, there's culture appropriation, and a few racial microaggressions (e.g., instead of observing that the servant girl has dark hair or olive skin, Alison observes her as "exotic"). All the same, this was published 28 years ago, and the series was overall diverse for its time. (It was originally designed to star three white girls, but author Sheri Cooper Sinkyn suggested making one of them Jewish [like her], which the creators did, along with adding a black girl. Later on in the series, a Native American girl joined the four girls.)

With a wondrous setting, fun magic, and pretty illustrations, but slow plot and mediocre main character, Alison of Arabia was worth reading but not memorable.

[Panda Incognito · Rating 3 out of 5]

The cultural elements are cringe-worthy by today's standards, but I enjoyed this more than I expected to. This Magic Attic book is one of the ones that I remembered best, and it has a particularly strong framing story and message, as Alison deals with sibling rivalry and family dynamic frustrations at home and learns a positive, non-saccharine lesson about contentment.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one I never actually read as a kid. It was a cute fantasy story teaching the value of appreciating what you have.

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish these books had gotten more attention. They were good reads but most girls in my class viewed them as American Girl knockoffs, since you could buy dolls and outfits to match each book. I loved the fantasy element.

[Carol Hardesty · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's kind of a shame that the "Magic Attic Club" series are so underrated, with less than 100 ratings on GoodReads. They're such fantastical, adventurous stories. "Alison of Arabia" is especially magical with its magic carpet rides and wise genies. I really liked the part where Alison tries dates for the first time and says, "I wish I had a million of these." And suddenly the room is filled with dates. :D

[Anna Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this one as a young girl, especially the part with the dates!

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alison Of Arabia (Magic Attic Club #18) by Nina Alexander - Alison watched I Dream of Jeanie reruns, and that's all there is to it! Happy Reading!