Magic: New Stories

Buy this book - you won't regret it.


All you could ask for from a collection of short stories.   January 11, 2005
 51 out of 53 found this review helpful

I'll be honest, I only bought this book because I'm a J.K.Rowling fan and I have to have everything she's ever had published (even if it's only a foreward). I wasn't expecting too much from the actual stories themselves. But I was more than merely pleasantly suprised. The stories are wonderful. Each one is somehow very different from the others but they all share an element of 'sparkle' which makes the collection jell rather well. This 'sparkle' is not just magic, though there is some magic (of sorts) in some of the stories, but is rather a property of the characters. Though the stories are all about different people the main characters have, in their behaviour, something which makes them stand out, something which makes them just a little bit special. Perhaps it's this which makes the stories so enchanting; the fact that the characters are close to being average and normal, but have some small quality which anyone might possess, but which almost no-one actually does possess. I hope that makes some sense. If not, let me simply say that the stories are not only very original but are also very well written and very enjoyable to read. I highly recommend this collection of short stories.


"Magic Moments"   June 28, 2002
 2 out of 3 found this review helpful

Tilly has wild aspirations of becoming a famous opera diva.
Sandra dreams of creating the perfect bra to revolutionize womens' lives and what has become of Professor Martin Presley whose scientific discovery has the worst repercussions ever?

These are just some of the topics explored in "Magic", which is an interesting anthology produced for The National Council For One-Parent Families. It aims to raise money to support the millions of single parents, like myself, facing financial hardship in bringing up a child single-handedly.
Its forward is by J.K Rowling, Ambassador of this charity and herself a lone parent once caught in the poverty trap.

The stories are kindly donated by well-accomplished authors including Fay Weldon, Sue Townsend and John O' Farrell.
Oozing originality, its tales stretch the imagination and provide its reader with escapism in abundance whilst also supporting a worthwhile cause.
Hocus Pocus this is not. This is British Fiction at its finest.


"Magic Moments"   June 28, 2002
 19 out of 23 found this review helpful

Tilly has wild aspirations of becoming a famous opera diva.
Sandra dreams of creating the perfect bra to revolutionize womens' lives and what has become of Professor Martin Presley whose scientific discovery has the worst repercussions ever?

These are just some of the topics explored in "Magic", which is an interesting anthology produced for The National Council For One-Parent Families. It aims to raise money to support the millions of single parents, like myself, facing financial hardship in bringing up a child single-handedly.
Its forward is by J.K Rowling, Ambassador of this charity and herself a lone parent once caught in the poverty trap.

The stories are kindly donated by well-accomplished authors including Fay Weldon, Sue Townsend and John O' Farrell.
Oozing originality, its tales stretch the imagination and provide its reader with escapism in abundance whilst also supporting a worthwhile cause.
Hocus Pocus this is not. This is British Fiction at its finest.


Splendid book, filled with sparkling stories   June 21, 2002
 11 out of 13 found this review helpful

I rarely read collections of short stories, but this one attracted me - it contans stories written by today's modern (mostly women) writers, and all of them tempted me to read other works by them.

Each story has magic as its theme - that is not to say the rabbit out of the hat magic, but more often the magic of an emotion or a feeling. My personal favourite is indeed the rabbit from a hat story by Meera Syal!

I can imagine that these stories will not appeal to everyone, but most of them will appeal to most women!

Read and enjoy.