christe@rand-unix.ARPA (10/26/85)
From: Chris McMenomy <christe@rand-unix.ARPA> >When I was in the third grade (about 24 years ago) I read a book >that sort of got me started on science fiction/fantasy. It involved >some kids who found an old coin which granted them wishes... sort >of. The coin was so old that they had to wish for everything twice >to get a complete wish, otherwise they only got half of what they >wished for. The book you are looking for is "Half Magic" by Edward Eager, and it has recently been reissued. Eager is a great children's fantasy writer and his books are always available in the children's section at the local public library. Others are "The Time Garden", "Magic by the Lake", "Well Magic", and "Knight's Castle". Two sets of children are involved, the ones in "Half Magic" and their children in "Knight's Castle". Two of the books contain the same scene, one with the parents-as-children and the other with their children-as-children. Several other fantasy authors picked up on this ploy after Eager: McCaffrey uses it in joining the adult fiction Pern books to the children's version ("Dragonsinger", "Dragonsong", "Dragondrums") series, and Jane Louise Curry uses it in her series about Abaloc. I love recursive literature. --Christe McMenomy christe@rand-unix