Book Review – Lavender-Green Magic

Author: Andre Norton
Cover Artist: Tristan Elwell
Publisher: Starscape Books
Binding: Paperback
Publication Date: November 2006

and originally published in 1974. It tells the story of Holly Wade who, along with twin brother and sister Crockett and Judy, have moved to Dimsdale, a city much more rural than their native Boston. While their mother works during the week at a nursing home, the children stay with their Grandparents. Not only are their grandparents mostly unfamiliar, known only as the relatives who send odd gifts for holidays and birthdays, but they live in a junkyard.

For the twins Crock and Judy, this is a fun and interesting change. For the older Holly, this is a devastating blow. Not only is Dimsdale populated by mostly whites, but she has to deal with that and the fact that they now live in a dump. As one of the few African-American students in her new school, afraid to make friends and worried about what people may think of her, this transition is much harder for Holly.

Soon after their move, however, the children find the key to an overgrown maze on the junkyard property. The mystery behind the maze is the catalyst that changes Holly forever. She has to learn how to accept her blessings for what they are and to accept that her actions can make changes, both for the better and for worse.

This is a nice little story with a several morals. Written over thirty years ago, the thoughts and ideas presented here are still valid today. With the reprinting, Tor has added a Reader’s Guide that would make this a wonderful addition to class reading curriculum. The guide presents thought provoking questions as well as research topics and creative writing activities.

The only issue I truly had with the book was the heavy accent Norton used to present class differences in her characters. While this is a completely understandable tool, I was a bit thrown off by it at first. Considering that this book should be for children however, I wouldn’t count this against it. This is a good way to get readers to go over what they’ve read and understand the meaning behind it.

I think that children will enjoy the story and it could provoke some insightful discussions on class differences, race differences and the challenges of being young.

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