Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Katie & Kimble: The Magic Wish by Linda Thieman--Book Review



Katie & Kimble are back with a new adventure in Katie & Kimble: The Magic Wish, Book 2 in the Katie & Kimble chapter book series.

When Katie finds a magic coupon in a box of cereal, Katie and Kimble decide to use their free wish to make Kimble human again. The wish will only last for two days and it's a bit scary for Kimble to know that Katie's parents will be able to see her and that she won't be able to float through walls for a while. But the girls plan to make the most of those two days and hope that everything will be back to normal once the wish is over.

Katie & Kimble is an entertaining series for young readers. After discovering Kimble in Book One--which we reviewed here--Katie and Kimble have become more like sisters than friends. While Katie's mother, Mrs. Russell can't hear Kimble when she's a ghost, she still allows Kimble to call her Mama. And once Kimble becomes human, Mrs. Russell not only hears her, but she hugs Kimble tightly and cries for joy.

One of the best aspects of this book is the complete acceptance of Kimble into the Russell family from Katie's parents, her two-year-old brother, Toby--who has always been able to see Kibo (as he calls her)--and even the family's dog, Twinkle. While young readers might not make the connection, this could be a book that parents use to show adopted children that they are accepted and loved just as much as natural born children.

An interesting admission comes from Mr. Russell in The Magic Wish and this helps pave the way for him to believe in Kimble and to welcome her home after she becomes a ghost again and goes off to rest.

The cover art uses the same color scheme as the first book to make it easily identifiable, and as the mother of a child who struggles with reading, I appreciate that the plot is interesting but not too complex and that there are words to challenge my daughter but many sight words too.

Katie & Kimble is a charming and fun chapter book series that kids will love. I can't wait to read the next one!


Title: Katie & Kimble: The Magic Wish Book 2
Author: Linda Thieman
Publisher: Pale Silver Rainplop Press
ISBN-10: 0-9794396-2-0
ISBN-13: 978-0-9794396-2-9
SRP: $5.95 (US)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for the wonderful review, Cheryl. I, too, have always thought that there is that element of the Russell's adopting Kimble, and how quickly parents can come to love a child. Next up, Kimble continues to explore what it means to be a ghost while the Russells learn that they are going to have to set some boundaries with Kimble living in the house as a family member! LOL