Five Children & It by E. Nesbit
E Nesbit is an expert at making the magic come to life and establishing it in a tangible reality. She has had a big impact on how I develop my characters. The Psammead is not like other fairies. It is a sand fairy with long horned eyes that can move in and out like telescopes and resemble snail eyes. It is a cranky hypochondriac with bat-like ears, and like Mary Poppins, it is amenable to flattery. It’s a really creative and distinctive characterisation.
She is outstanding in that regard. The Phoenix, who gave me such good laughs, was the same. He constantly refers to himself in the third person as “My Golden Presence.” He has a lot of vanities.
Five Children & It by E. Nesbit
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In the 1900s, when Five Children & IT is set, I dare argue that times were different for kids. You’ll read about the various clothing trends. The babies typically wore dresses, with the boys donning knickerbockers and the girls’ pinafores over their gowns with petticoats underneath, depending on their age and affluence.
The usage of English idioms would be another difference. These were spooky good times for us! Look at this, things used to look quite jolly nasty when the kids got into one of the several fixes! I’m not trying to bug you!
The story centres on five kids and a wish-granting sand fairy known as a psammead. Not just one wish, and not even three. What would you think if I told you that these kids have boundless wishes, the dream that everyone has? Every day a fresh wish! What do you suppose their desires were? And what if I told you that this “sand fairy,” as they call her, seems to have a hidden agenda that will cause her to grant your wishes in a humorous and terrifying sequence? What exactly is he doing?
The book Five Children & IT, by E. Nesbit
There is a good reason why it has never gone out of print since it was first released in 1902! We’re on the hunt for more legendary records.
