Review of The Secret of Magic

[KMGR70]

[i][Following is a volunteer review of "The Secret of Magic" by Natassa Louppou.][/i]

[rwc=id454099-125]4 out of 4 stars.[/rwc][i]The Secret of Magic[/i] by Natassa Louppou may be a quick read, but it’s also creative, addresses morals, and jam packed with adventures! Tania has just turned twelve and celebrated with an exciting birthday party complete with fancy food, lots of friends, and a magician for entertainment. After the party, Tania finds the magician’s suitcase that he uses during his performance. Tania’s curiosity was peeked and couldn’t resist exploring the mysterious stage prop that could hold secrets to his magic act. Not only did she find a living treasure that fulfilled an essential part of any good children’s story, but she also happened upon a secret box that ensured endless adventures to come.



Without giving spoilers, the magical contents of the secret box whisked Tania and her new found traveling companion, Mike, to one major historical event after another. Each event had taken place, by coincidence on her birthday, but decades, even centuries apart. Each time leap challenged Tania to be courageous and use her knowledge of the historical event in ways that made a difference. One instance even set the course for her very own family, otherwise it may have never transpired. By the end of their travels that night, Tania felt good about what she had accomplished and knew she could make a real difference in the world starting with one person at a time. The next morning at school, she had the courage to finally stand up to some bullies that were always picking on another student and in doing so, gave her teacher, principal, and mother a new found respect for her and a good lesson in doing what’s right, as well.



This was truly an enjoyable short story. Many times, short stories may leave you feeling a bit cheated of good characters, worthy plot developments, and abrupt endings. Natassa Louppou convinced me otherwise and did so with ease. My favorite part was how the author included an assortment of historical events and sprinkled a few Italian and German words throughout, including footnotes for reference in each instance. It was presented in a fun story allowing readers to soak up a little history, vocabulary, and moral lessons along the way. The writing was very clear, easy to understand, and other than one profanity used twice, it’s well suited for the children’s book or young adult category as listed.



I wouldn’t mind seeing Mike, the cute traveling companion, have a bigger role and bringing a little humor to what could otherwise be a sad, tragic story. But, I really can’t think of anything I didn’t enjoy about this entertaining story. There were some formatting issues concerning spacing the author may want to check on but it didn’t slow me down at all. It was pretty impressive that this self-professed grammar freak didn’t find anything noteworthy to point out!



This time, I’m happily putting my grammar judging red pen away and giving [i]The Secret of Magic[/i] a well-deserved [b]4 out of 4 stars[/b]! The creative planning that went into this adventure is sure to bring joy to many readers. It’s [i]Gulliver’s Travels[/i] meets [i]Back to the Future[/i] but with a cuter sidekick traveling companion! Aside from the one profanity, this adventure is perfect for middle schoolers and older. Perhaps we will see more adventures as a series in the future!

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[i]The Secret of Magic [/i]
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