The Magic Faraway Tree: A New Adventure by Jacqueline Wilson

Discover the Magic Faraway Tree and explore the amazing lands it can lead to! An irresistible new story by bestselling author Jacqueline Wilson, set in a much-loved world.

Three kids, Milo, Mia and Birdy, are on a countryside holiday when they wander into an Enchanted Wood. Among the whispering leaves, there is a beautiful tree that stands high above the rest. The Magic Faraway Tree is home to remarkable creatures including a fairy called Silky, her best friend Moonface and more. Birdy is delighted to find that fairies are real. Even her older brother and sister are soon won over by the magic of the Faraway Tree and the extraordinary places they discover above it, including the Land of Unicorns. But not every land is so much fun. Danger looms in the Land of Dragons. Will Moonface's magic work in time to save the children?

The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton was Jacqueline Wilson's own favourite book as a young child. Now Britain's favourite contemporary children's author, creator of Hetty Feather and Tracy Beaker, revisits this glorious magical world, weaving a brand-new story perfect for the next generation of young readers. Discover the magic!

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Jacqueline Wilson has proven that she can update old stories. She's taken on What Katy Did, The Railway Children and Five Children and It, and all have been fantastic success stories. But telling stories set in someone else's world is quite a different thing. Jacqueline has written a wonderful adventure story, full of fun and magic. But she hasn't captured Enid Blyton's tone in the way that, for example, Pamela Cox did in her Malory Towers continuations.

As always, Jacqueline's talent for descriptions shines through, in ways that it usually can't given her normal contemporary settings. I especially enjoyed reading about the many new types of magical food enjoyed at various times - and the bouncy castle with treats tucked into the sides! Kids will absolutely adore them, and there'll be a spate of demands for bedtime stories with new magical lands and new foods. There's also a viscerally upsetting bit when one of the children realises that, because she didn't know the Lands move away from the Tree, she's made a promise to a denizen that she can't keep; her disappointment and upset simply jump off the page. I hope Jacqueline writes some more, if only to reunite those two characters and let them sort out the misunderstanding!

My proof copy didn't include the art, but knowing Mark Beech's style, I can't wait to see it in person - it's going to look great.

Adults who read the original books as children may notice a few changes. For example, Moonface is no longer the topmost resident of the Faraway Tree...he's now the third one up, and several others live above him. However, the Slippery Slip still begins in his room, which must be annoying for people higher up the tree who want to slide down. (I do applaud the addition of a safety wall around the Slip - Cousin Connie would too, I'm sure!) In addition, time no longer moves in the Enchanted Wood, although it did in the originals; there were several instances of the children packing a lunch and staying in the Wood all day. Besides that, if there's no time passing in the Wood, how does Silky come to visit Birdy each night in the cottage?

The book is set in the modern day, though since most of the action takes place in the Wood that doesn't mean very much; there's some awkwardly inserted 'women power' bits, and the Saucepan Man now raps for some reason(!) but otherwise it's all very much as it was in Blyton's day. Young children won't notice the changes, of course, and they will very much enjoy this new story and clamour for more, which I hope they'll get; but adults looking for a nostalgia blast, this isn't the one for you. Go back and reread the originals instead.

A New Adventure publishes on the 26th of May, 2022. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.