THE MAGIC CARPET.

ISBN 978-1077808034

THE MAGIC CARPET by JESSICA NORRIE. 

Outer London, September 2016, and neighbouring eight-year-olds have homework: prepare a traditional story to perform with their families at a school festival. But Nathan's father thinks his son would be better off doing sums; Sky's mother's enthusiasm is as fleeting as her bank balance, and there's a threatening shadow hanging over poor Alka's family. Only Mandeep's fragile grandmother and new girl Xoriyo really understand the magical powers of storytelling.

As national events and individual challenges jostle for the adults' attention, can these two bring everyone together to ensure the show will go on?

- Back Cover Blurb

The baby explores a range of squeaks and his tiny fingers uncurl and close again.

- First Sentence, Friday 14th October 2016

Sitting together on our big bed, with Xoriyo in soft pyjamas, the magic carpet is refuge for my daughter and myself, the edges of the bed a drop into reality.

- Memorable Moment, Page 65

MY THOUGHTS ... Invited into the homes of several different families all tasked with adapting a story to be performed at their child's school.

{OOH! A story about the telling of stories. For us bibliophiles things don't get much better than this, right?}

We are invited into several homes where we get to meet an assortment of children and adults of different ages and backgrounds. 

{Hmm! I hope the narrative doesn't jump around too much; that each of the character's has a clear and distinct voice.}

I normally only find myself struggling to this degree when sharing my thoughts on a book that wasn't to my taste; when I'm struggling to find something/anything positive to say about a book so its something of a new experience struggling with what to say about a book because, well, I just don't know where to begin sharing all of the aspects that made it such a joy to read ... and yet here I am, struggling with what to say.

{Oh I know! I'll begin with the characters; the characters are always a good place to start.}

Hats off to the author for giving us such a memorable and authentic cast of characters. That she gave them all (both as individuals and family units) such a unique (and thankfully stereotype and cliche free) voice; that each relationship (indeed every event) was written with such depth, it wasn't long before I came to invest in them; that they became as friends and neighbours which isn't something I can always say about a novel and especially not a novel where the narrative is shared amongst so many characters ... that they were often of different genders and ages and backgrounds to her (and my) own, well, that speaks for itself.

Insightful, heart warming and thought provoking. Ultimately the journey of a community being brought together BUT set in multi-cultural London, a society struggling to assimilate those of different colours, cultures and faiths, sadly, racism, prejudice and domestic abuse do raise their ugly heads. 

Not just well researched but heartfelt; the author's knowledge and love of teaching young children apparent. That the novel explores just how the issues adults seek to keep from children believing they are shielding them can have a profound effect is just one of the many, many things that, characters and plot in general aside, made The Magic Carpet such an engaging and, yes, important read for me.

SUMMED UP IN A SENTENCE ... The utterly engrossing story of a society trying to assimilate different cultures, backgrounds and faiths peopled by characters you cannot help but invest in, The Magic Carpet is every bit a story of our times.

With sincere thanks to Jessica Norrie, it was both an honour and a pleasure to share my thoughts on The Magic Carpet.