Reviews
Five Children And It: A Brilliant Story of Fantasy (Annotated) By Edith Nesbit. by E. Nesbit
allieperkins's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
borumi's review against another edition
5.0
Even better as a parent
This was one of my favorite books as a child, and it's even more touching and ironic as a mother knowing how fleeting and precious childhood is and on learning Nesbitt's story of losing her child.
This was one of my favorite books as a child, and it's even more touching and ironic as a mother knowing how fleeting and precious childhood is and on learning Nesbitt's story of losing her child.
rachelb36's review against another edition
4.0
I could hardly tell that this was written 120 years ago! A cute story with a lot of funny moments - I definitely understand why it's a classic. This would be a fun one to read aloud.
rjmcewan's review against another edition
4.0
Just finished reading this to my 7-year-old and he really enjoyed it, despite being generally reluctant to tackle longer chapter books. The dated language makes this better suited to a read-aloud, with some explanations added in as necessary. I had never read it but genuinely enjoyed it.
fhm1998's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
poachedeggs's review against another edition
3.0
If I had read [b:Seven-Day Magic|312083|Seven-Day Magic (Tales of Magic, #7)|Edward Eager|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1173656339s/312083.jpg|452393] later, I think I would have been (justly) more captivated by Nesbit's story. Now that I've read Five Children and It, I am in a real muddle. I don't know whether to adjust my original four-star rating for Eager's tribute, and whether to increase my rating for the original inspiration for his tale.
The truth is, both are pretty much the same story, with a group of siblings taking turns at making wishes that turn out terribly wrong. But Eager's book contains some macabre elements, which I did enjoy slightly more than the indistinguishable five siblings' adventures in this book.
The truth is, both are pretty much the same story, with a group of siblings taking turns at making wishes that turn out terribly wrong. But Eager's book contains some macabre elements, which I did enjoy slightly more than the indistinguishable five siblings' adventures in this book.
foreverday's review against another edition
2.0
I'll prelude this review by saying that books whose main focus are wishes are usually a miss for me, and that is simply because the main plot points of those books seem to be the making of a dubious wish and then learning the lesson that it was a Bad Idea.
Unfortunately, because I am very fond of this writing style and E Nesbit, this book was much of the same... over and over again. They'd try to learn their lesson and then something would go wrong, which was a little frustrating to read and I've never particularly enjoyed the feeling that I could've done better than the characters.
I liked the Psammead, I found his character v funny (in a way I definitely wouldn't have appreciated as a child) and the characters of the other children were also v sweet, but I just couldn't gel with the plot.
Unfortunately, because I am very fond of this writing style and E Nesbit, this book was much of the same... over and over again. They'd try to learn their lesson and then something would go wrong, which was a little frustrating to read and I've never particularly enjoyed the feeling that I could've done better than the characters.
I liked the Psammead, I found his character v funny (in a way I definitely wouldn't have appreciated as a child) and the characters of the other children were also v sweet, but I just couldn't gel with the plot.
akmorgan's review against another edition
3.0
British and rather dated, but still a very charming story. :)
sajole's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5