Polly Diamond and the Magic Book (Polly Diamond #1)

by Alice Kuipers (Author) Diana Toledano (Illustrator)

Polly Diamond and the Magic Book (Polly Diamond #1)
Reading Level: 2nd − 3rd Grade
Series: Polly Diamond

Polly loves words. And she loves writing stories. So when a magic book appears on her doorstep that can make everything she writes happen in real life, Polly is certain all of her dreams are about to come true.

But she soon learns that what you write and what you mean are not always the same thing!

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School Library Journal

Gr 1-3--Polly Diamond has a great sense of adventure and an imaginative spirit: think Gooney Bird and Judy Moody rolled into one. Polly is about to get a new sibling. On the day her mother goes into labor, Polly receives a blank journal with amazing powers. Not only can the book write back to Polly, but it has the power to make her written hopes come true. The magical book turns her bedroom walls into an aquarium, makes her invisible, and transforms her little sister into a banana. All is not fun and magical games, however. Polly needs to resolve the problems that arise from too much magic. When the magical journal takes a very literal turn, Polly finds herself in a predicament that requires a good deal of careful writing to resolve. The energy of the writing keeps the pages turning, though the sophistication of some elements of the story may keep the audience rather limited or require an adult to read aloud and explain. Polly, as depicted on the cover and in interior illustrations, is brown-skinned, though her race and ethnicity are not mentioned in the text. Illustrations on nearly every page add visual appeal and will motivate new readers. VERDICT A fast-paced story full of magic. An additional selection for larger collections.--John Scott, Friends School of Baltimore

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Publishers Weekly

This breezy series kickoff from Kuipers (Violet and Victor Write the Most Fabulous Fairy Tale) introduces a heroine with a delightfully outsize personality and celebrates the power of imagination and words. An inveterate list lover and aspiring author, Polly Diamond makes an ambitious to-do list at the start of what she senses will be a "Super-Fantastic Day," but she gets sidetracked when a mysterious package appears on her doorstep. It contains a blank book that responds to Polly's written comments and requests--literally. After she wishes that her bedroom was painted aquarium blue, fish appear swimming along glistening walls; Polly disappears from sight after writing that she likes how playing hide-and-seek makes her feel invisible; and her yearning for a "perfectly palatial" house produces a mansion complete with a waterslide and a crown-shaped bed. The book's magical power has some cornier repercussions, too: in an incident that would make Amelia Bedelia nod knowingly, instead of a club sandwich, Polly is served a wooden club between two slices of bread. As the narrator's interior monologue moves at a whirlwind pace, Toledano's spry cartoons amplify the story's exuberance, conveying Polly's imaginary and real lives with humor and affection. Ages 6-9. (May)

Copyright 2018 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"A fast-paced story full of magic." - School Library Journal
Alice Kuipers
Alice Kuipers is the author of 4 novels and a picture book. Her work has been shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal and selected as a Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Book of the Year. She lives in Saskatoon, Canada.

Diana Toledano divides her time between working as a freelance illustrator and teaching in museums. She lives in San Francisco.
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9781452182216
Lexile Measure
330
Guided Reading Level
N
Publisher
Chronicle Books
Publication date
August 06, 2019
Series
Polly Diamond
BISAC categories
JUV047000 - Juvenile Fiction | Books & Libraries
JUV051000 - Juvenile Fiction | Imagination & Play
JUV037000 - Juvenile Fiction | Fantasy & Magic
JUV045000 - Juvenile Fiction | Readers | Chapter Books
Library of Congress categories
Magic
Families
Family life
Books and reading
Sisters

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