Harry
Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling.
The
Book of Three (and others in the Chronicles
of Prydain series) by Lloyd Alexander. Grades 5-8.
This is a tale of enchantment, both good and evil, and of the Assistant
Pig-Keeper who wants to become a hero the moment he blisters his fingers
on the enchanter Dallben's Book of Three.
The
Enchanted Castle by E. Nesbit. Grades 4-8.
The summer adventures of four children who discover an enchanted castle
and a magic ring.
The
Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. Grades 4-12.
Lyra Belacqua sets out to prevent her best friend and other kidnapped
children from becoming the subject of gruesome experiments in the Far
North in a world alike but yet unlike our own.
Sequels: The
Subtle Knife, The
Amber Spyglass.
The
Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis. Grades
3-8.
Four English school children find their way through the back of wardrobe
into the magic land of Narnia and assist Aslan, the golden lion, to triumph
over the White Witch, who has cursed the land with eternal winter.
Note: Book 1 of the Chronicles
of Narnia series.
The
Lives of Christopher Chant by Dianna Wynne Jones. Grades
5-8.
Young Christopher Chant, who had no idea he was magical at all till he
met his Uncle Ralph, becomes a key figure in a battle with renegade sorcerers
because he has nine lives.
Magic
in the Mist by Margaret Mary Kimmel. Grades 3-5.
Thomas, while living in West Wales, studies long and hard to become a
wizard but with very little success.
Magic
Steps by Tamora Pierce. Grades 5-9.
Sandry, from the Circle of Magic series, and her new student Pasco interweave
their magic powers to defeat an invisible foe.
Note: Book 1 in the Circle
Opens series.
The
Magical Worlds of Harry Potter: A Treasury of Myths, Legends, and
Fascinating Facts by David Colbert. Grades 4-12.
This companion to the Harry Potter novels includes the origins of magical
creatures such as the phoenix and the hippogriff as well as stories of
real-life wizards.
Mixed
Magics: Four Tales of Chrestomanci by Dianna Wynne Jones.
Grades 5-8.
This book includes four stories of the Chrestomanci, an enchanter who
controls the misuse of magic.
The
Mystery of the Several Sevens by Bill Brittain. Grades
3-5.
Mr. Merlin, a wizard disguised as a substitute teacher, magically transports
two fifth graders to a fairyland where they must solve a riddle to find
out who has stolen the seven dwarf's bag of diamonds.
The
Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope. Grades 5-8.
In 1558 while imprisoned in a remote castle, a young girl becomes involved
in a series of events that leads to an underground labyrinth peopled
by the last practitioners of druidic magic.
Princess
Nevermore by Dian Curtis Regan. Grades 5-8.
Princess Quinnella unexpectedly gets her wish in the wizard's circle.
Unfortunately it means she might never go home again.
Redwall by
Brian Jacques. Grades 5-8.
When life at ancient Redwall is shattered by the evil rat Cluny, Matthias
determines to find the legendary sword of Martin the Warrior, which will
help Redwall's inhabitants destroy the enemy.
Sequels: Mossflower, Mattimeo, Mariel
of Redwall and others.
The
Riddle and the Rune by Grace Chetwin. Grades 5-8.
Gom sets forth to seek his destiny, discovering that he has new powers
and a gift for making friends, such as the magnificent horse Stormfleet,
who accompanies him through many adventures.
Rowan
of Rin by Emily Rodda. Grades 5-8.
Young Rowan, the only one who can read the magical map, must accompany
six other villagers to a mountain on top of which there is a fire-breathing
dragon that threatens their livelihood. Sequels include Rowan
and the Keeper of the Crystal, Rowan
and the Travelers and Rowan
and the Zebak and Rowan
and the Ice-Creepers.
School
of Wizardry by Debra Doyle. Grades 3-7.
Determined to become a wizard, twelve-year-old Randal is delighted to
be accepted into the famed School of Wizardry, but his apprenticeship
is marred when he realizes that one of the master wizards is using evil
spells to destroy the school and gain supreme power.
Note: Book 1 in Doyle's Circle
of Magic series.
The
Secret of Platform 13 by Eva Ibbotson. Grades 4-8.
Odge Gribble, a young hag, accompanies an old wizard, a gentle fey, and
a giant ogre on their mission through a magical tunnel from their Island
to London to rescue their King and Queen's son who had been stolen as
an infant.
The
Seeing Stone by Kevin Crossley-Holland. Grades 5 and up.
Thirteen-year-old Arthur recounts how Merlin gave him a magical seeing
stone which recounts King Arthur's life - a life that seems to mirror
his own
So
You Want to be a Wizard by Diane Duane. Grades 5-8.
Nita, tormented by a gang of bullies, finds the help she needs in a library
book on wizardry.
The
Steps Up the Chimney by William Corlett. The Magician's
Quartet series. Grades 6-10.
William and his younger sisters discover steps in the chimney of their
Uncle Jack's house that lead them to a magician from the past.
Stravaganza:
City of Masks by Mary Hoffman. Grades 5-8.
Lucien is sick in bed with cancer when he learns he is a Stravagante,
capable of traveling between two worlds. One world is his sickbed, the
other is a Venice-like city called Bellezza. Join Lucien as he becomes
an apprentice to the magician-scientist Rodolpho and helps foil an assassination
attempt.
The
Waterstone by Rebecca Rupp. Grades 5-8.
Tad discovers he is the Sagamore and that only he can battle the evil
forces threatening to destroy his forest and all the creatures in it.
The
Wayfinder by Darci Patterson. Grades 5-8.
Winchal is a Wayfinder, one who can locate anything or anyone. When a
mysterious plague threatens his people, he must set out on a perilous
journey to find the Well of Life.
The
Weirdstone of Brisingamen: A Tale of Alderley by Alan Garner.
Grades 4-8.
A young girl and her brother are catapulted into a battle between good
and evil for possession of a magical stone of great power that is contained
in her bracelet.
The
Wishing Tree by Ruth Chew. Grades 3-5.
A bird and cat that talk and a hollowed-out tree in a nearby park involve
a brother and sister in a magical adventure.
A
Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin. Grades
5-8.
A boy grows to manhood while attempting to subdue the evil he unleashed
on the world as an apprentice to the Master Wizard.
Wizard's
Hall by Jane Yolen. Grades 5-8.
A young apprentice wizard saves the wizard's training hall by trusting
and believing in himself. |
