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Synopsis
Mr Leakey is a practical magician. He can become invisible when he wants to, has a useful magic carpet for travelling and a small dragon who can grill fish by spitting fire. He's also very good at bewitching things!
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This was probably my favourite book when I was little. I can't imagine how many times I've read it- for me, the perfect blend of reality and fantasy. It's also very funny and neatly written- by J.B.S. Haldane, a leading authority on genetics in his time, and a very famous scientist indeed. There are 6 stories in the book- A Meal With A Magician, A Day in the Life of a Magician, Mr Leakey's Party, Rats, The Snake With the Golden Teeth, My Magic Collar Stud. If you buy any of the later editions, it'll be illustrated by Quentin Blake.
The whole tone of the writing is confiding and breezy, with the author taking the craziest things perfectly in stride- a very calm, English attitude, and the settings are slightly quaint-seeming now, but again, very English and of their time. It nails perfectly the knack of referring to things that may be over the readers head without confusing them, so although there are some allusions in there you might not understand until you're older, it never spoils the story. It's also very short, which is a shame, as to my knowledge it's the only fiction Mr Haldane ever wrote. A must-read, though.
The whole tone of the writing is confiding and breezy, with the author taking the craziest things perfectly in stride- a very calm, English attitude, and the settings are slightly quaint-seeming now, but again, very English and of their time. It nails perfectly the knack of referring to things that may be over the readers head without confusing them, so although there are some allusions in there you might not understand until you're older, it never spoils the story. It's also very short, which is a shame, as to my knowledge it's the only fiction Mr Haldane ever wrote. A must-read, though.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read and re-read this book as a child over 30 years ago and loved it so much that eventually my copy fell apart. It is really quirky and fun and should appeal to the younger end of the Harry Potter generation. I am looking forward to tracking down a copy to share with my 7 year old.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I too have loved this book for 30 years (or more....) and reread it until my copy fell apart. It's 'real' magic, no messing. I learnt things from it that have stayed with me for life (for instance the advice about Mangoes and how to rid a place of rats. A great fun book, appeals to adults and children alike, almost ageless, from 7 - 70.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Still in print!
I'd completely forgotten the existence of this book, which I read as a child. But I came across the name of J B S Haldane the other day, remembered he'd written a children's book... Read more
Published 5 days ago by Mrs. S. I. M. Hodge
Not quite the same magic
I'm another in the band of Leakevists. What really impressed me, growing up (this is a book that, like ALL the best children's books, you never actually grow out of) is, reading... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Simon G. Barrett
My Friend Mr Leakey
I loved this book as a child and have just bought it for my own children. Hugely imaginative story that I still remember clearly over thirty years later.
Published on 29 Dec 2009 by CLK
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