I dearly love Edward Eager's books, so it was a bit painful to revisit this one and discover that it was not as good as I'd remembered it. This is a re-read, as I was reading it out loud to my 9-year-old son. Many seem to love this series, not one we enjoyed though. The story seemed to be aimed at fairly young children so I expect they would find this aspect boring. I like children to think girls or boys can be friends and viewed as equal human beings and not suddenly interesting because they are viewed as potential love interests. I always found this a bit cringy as a child, several places were eye rolling in the way this was described. There are also references to the oldest boy discovering girls, and being obsessed with females etc. We enjoyed an episode where the children help some slaves escape to Canada. I think we would have enjoyed this book more if we had more knowledge about American history, we know very little and several of the time slip episodes happened in events that most US and Canadian readers would be familiar with but left us not understanding what was happening or what period it was set in. I really like Quentin Blake's illustrations but they really didn't suit this book, their comical style seems much more suited to books that are funny or for a younger reader. Perhaps we would have enjoyed the series more starting at the beginning. Enjoy all seven of the middle grade novels in Edward Eager's beloved Tales of Magic series!Ģ.5 We thought we would enjoy this a lot more than we did. For fans of such favorite series as The Penderwicks and The Vanderbeekers. “Anything can happen,” the Natterjack says, “when you have all the time in the world.” This funny and gentle classic series is an enjoyable read-aloud and also a strong choice for independent reading. Or so says the Natterjack, the toadlike creature who accompanies the children on a series of hilarious, always unpredictable adventures. Growing there is olden time, future time, and common time. Whiton’s house, magic grows as wild as the banks of thyme in the garden. It requires the right place and the right time. Time and again, the children from Knight’s Castle have longed for another magic adventure. Book four in the series called "truly magic in a reader's hands" by Jack Gantos, Newbery Medal winner for Dead End in Norvelt.
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