So you have read every book on the "If you like Harry Potter, then you'll like…" list. Well, I guess that list will have to be updated, because I have another one. 2012 Caudill Nominee, The Magic Thief, is the first in this series. This is the kind of book I would recommend to the kids who want more Harry Potter. I am not saying it is better and I am not saying it is similar. But it IS a book about a boy who is surprised to find out that he is a wizard. This is also the kind of book that I would recommend to kids who want to read Harry Potter in the worst way, but aren't quite up to the later, "older" Harry volumes. It is not as intense or complex. So I will recommend it to fantasy/magic fans, perhaps 4th-6th.
Let me introduce you to young Conn of uncertain age and unknown origin. He is a barefoot gutter thief on the streets of the Twilight – or industrial portion of the town of Wellmet. He has been living on the streets living out of the pockets of passersby since his mother died. And then one day, he picks the pocket of a wizard and produces the wizard's locus magicalicus – or magic stone – but is unharmed in the encounter.
Enter Nevery Flinglas, a magister of Wellmet returning after a twenty-year exile. He was banished by the Duchess for his dangerous and destructive pyrotechnic experiments. The remaining magisters have called him back for help. Wellmet is sitting on a magic node, but the magic is disappearing at an astonishing rate and they need someone to lead them in figuring out the why and the how before the city dies.
The wizard Nevery might not want an apprentice, but he could certainly use a servant to help restore his ancestral mansion into a place where he can tackle the problem presented before him. Conn has different ideas. He knows he could never be a servant, but has decided that he would definitely like to be an apprentice. He knows he is a wizard.
Conn's first obstacle – he has no locus magicalicus. Apprentice's usually come forth upon finding their magic stone. You cannot be an apprentice without one. Consider how in Harry Potter each wizard connects with their own unique wand. In The Magic Thief, each wizard is called by or drawn to their own magical stone. It might be a pebble, it might be a jewel, it might be small or it might not. But the magic will not work for you without one. Conn's first task is to find one – in 30 days or lose his tentative apprenticeship.
Conn's next obstacle – school. He cannot read or write so how can he possibly learn spells? Let alone learn the history of magic and theory behind magic. So Conn is registered into the Academicos, but is also given a tutor to catch him up to his peers. He is lucky to be a natural, but unfortunately, with all of the school work and housework, when will he ever find the time to find his stone?
I am very excited to have Books 2 and 3 at home already. There is just enough new and unique here to catch my attention. But there is also enough familiarly fantastic to make it a cozy read.
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