New Releases by Edith Nesbit

In "The Enchanted Castle," Edith Nesbit weaves a captivating narrative that blends fantasy with the charm of early 20th-century childhood adventures. This richly illustrated edition enhances the experience, drawing readers into a realm where magic intertwines with reality. The story follows siblings who stumble upon a hidden castle and encounter a mysterious princess, challenging the boundaries between imagination and belief. Nesbit''s prose is characterized by whimsy and a keen understanding of children''s psychology, reflective of the literary movements of her time, particularly the burgeoning of children''s literature as a respected genre. Edith Nesbit, a pioneering figure in children''s literature, drew inspiration from her own experiences of a Victorian upbringing intertwined with a fervent belief in the power of imagination. Known for her unique approach to storytelling, she often incorporated elements of fantasy into relatable, real-world scenarios. Her background in poetry and her involvement in socialist politics influenced her writings, encouraging a focus on themes of friendship, family, and social equity as portrayed through the lens of childhood adventure. I highly recommend "The Enchanted Castle" for both young readers and adults who cherish nostalgia. Nesbit''s ability to encapsulate the wonders of childhood, coupled with enchanting illustrations, makes this edition not just a reading experience but a visual delight. It is a profound exploration of wonder and belief, sure to inspire the imagination of all who open its pages.

"Five Children and It" is the enduringly popular children''s tale by English author Edith Nesbit, also well-known for her classic story "The Railway Children". First published in 1902 in "Strand Magazine", "Five Children and It" is a magical story that cleverly illustrates the wisdom of the saying "be careful what you wish for". The novel begins when five siblings, who have recently moved from London to a house in the country, discover Psammead, a sand fairy, in a gravel pit where they are playing. Psammead is a strange looking and grumpy creature who has the power to make wishes come true. He promises to grant the children one magical wish per day with the rule that each wish ends at sunset. The children soon discover that their wishes never turn out exactly as they had imagined, as their choices often lead to unexpected mishaps and adventures, including dangerous encounters with wild people, kidnapping attempts, a narrow escape from a besieged castle, and humorous changes in their appearance and size. "Five Children and It" has inspired many adaptations and sequels and remains an entertaining and enduring classic tale of fantasy and adventure. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.

Imagine if magic was real, would it be used for good or evil? Kathleen, Gerald, and Jimmy is about to find out. During a summer vacation, the three children find a mysterious house with what appears to be a sleeping princess in the garden. When they wake her up and find out that she is the housekeeper’s niece, an adventure begins. The niece, Mabel, has a magical ring, and making the wearer invisible is just one of the many things it can do. But soon the children find out that magic is not all good and using it can go horribly wrong. In order to control it, they must find courage and strength that they have never experienced before. Revealing the wonderful world of children similar to J.M. Barrie’s "Peter Pan," this is one of the many enchanted tales Nesbit is known for. Born in Kennington in 1858, Edith Nesbit wrote and co-authored over 60 beloved adventures at the beginning of the 20th century. Among her most popular books are "The Story of the Treasure-Seekers" (1899), "The Phoenix and the Carpet" (1904), and "The Railway Children" (1906). Many of her works became adapted to musicals, movies, and TV shows. Along with her husband Hubert Bland, she was among the first members of the Fabian society - a socialist debating club. A path in London close to her home was named "Railway Children Walk" in her honor, manifesting her legacy as one of the pioneers within the children’s fantasy genre.

The Railway Children is a children''s book by Edith Nesbit, originally serialised in The London Magazine during 1905 and first published in book form in 1906. It has been adapted for the screen several times, of which the 1970 film version is the best known. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography credits Oswald Barron, who had a deep affection for Nesbit, with having provided the plot. The setting is thought to be inspired by Edith''s walks to Chelsfield railway station close to where she lived, and her observing the construction of the railway cutting and tunnel between Chelsfield and Knockholt.

The Story of the Amulet - Edith Nesbit - The magic Psammead is back! This time the four children, Cyril, Robert, Anthea and Jane are stuck in London for the Summer, when they come across the Psammead (or wish-giving sand-fairy), imprisoned in a pet shop. They manage to free him, and he tells them where they can get hold of a magic amulet which will bring them their hearts'' desire. Unfortunately when the amulet is secured, it is incomplete. They and the Psammead must travel back into ancient history to see the part of the amulet which was lost. The children experience one breathtaking adventure after another in Babylon, Egypt, the lost city of Atlantis, Tyre... Edith Nesbit was to children in the early 20th century what J.K. Rowling is to today''s young generation. Magic, mythical creatures, time travel, charms, words of power... Nesbit''s stories have it all. The Story Of The Amulet is the third and final book in this series. The first two are: Five Children and It, and The Phoenix And The Carpet

The Phoenix and the Carpet - Edith Nesbit - The Phoenix and the Carpet is a fantasy novel for children, written in 1904 by E. Nesbit. It is the second in a trilogy of novels that began with Five Children and It (1902), and follows the adventures of the same five protagonists – Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane and the Lamb. Their mother buys the children a new carpet to replace the one from the nursery that was destroyed in an accidental fire. The children find an egg in the carpet which hatches into a talking Phoenix. The Phoenix explains that the carpet is a magical one that will grant them three wishes per day. The five children go on many adventures which eventually wears out their magical carpet. The adventures of the children are continued and conclude in the third book of the trilogy, The Story of the Amulet (1906). This middle volume of the trilogy that began with Five Children and It and concludes with The Story of the Amulet deviates somewhat from the other two because the Psammead gets only a brief mention, and because in this volume the children live with both of their parents and their younger brother—the Lamb—in their home in London. Consequently, there is less loneliness and sense of loss in this volume than in the other two. In both of the other volumes, circumstances have forced the children to spend a protracted period away from their familiar London home and their father; in Amulet, their mother and the Lamb are absent as well. A continuing theme throughout The Phoenix and the Carpet is, appropriately enough, the ancient element of fire. The story begins shortly before November 5, celebrated in England as Guy Fawkes Night. Traditionally, children light bonfires and set off fireworks on this night. The four children have accumulated a small hoard of fireworks but are too impatient to wait until November 5 to light them, so they set off a few samples in the nursery. This results in a fire that destroys the carpet. Their parents purchase a second-hand carpet which, upon arrival, is found to contain an egg that emits a weird phosphorescent glow. The children accidentally knock this egg into the fire: it hatches, revealing a golden Phoenix who speaks perfect English. It develops that this is a magical carpet, which can transport the children to anywhere they wish in the present time, although it is only capable of three wishes per day. Accompanied by the Phoenix, the children have exotic adventures in various climes. There is one moment of terror for the children when their youngest brother, the Lamb, crawls onto the carpet, babbles some incoherent baby talk, and vanishes. Fortunately, the Lamb only desired to be with his mother. At a few points in the novel, the children find themselves in predicaments from which the Phoenix is unable to rescue them by himself; he goes to find the Psammead and has a wish granted for the children''s sake. In addition, in the end, the carpet is sent to ask the Psammead to grant the Phoenix''s wish. These offstage incidents are the only contribution made by the Psammead to this story.

Five Children and It - Edith Nesbit - A family of five children moves from London to the English countryside. While playing in a gravel pit soon after the move, the children discover an ancient and rather grumpy, sand-fairy known as the Psammead. The magical being agrees to grant one wish of theirs per day, but those wishes rarely turn out as they expect and they send them on one adventure after the other.

Edith Nesbit''s The Book of Dragons is a collection of eight children''s stories linked through the common theme of dragons.These fantastical tales would make for perfect bedtime reading material and are deserving of a place on any family bookshelf.

Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland) (1858-1924) was an English author and poet whose children''s works were published under the androgynous name of E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on over 60 books of fiction for children, several of which have been adapted for film and television. She started a new genre of magical adventures arising from everyday settings and has been much imitated. She was also a political activist and co-founded the Fabian Society, a precursor to the modern Labour Party. Nesbit''s books for children are known for being entertaining without turning didactic, although some of her earlier works, notably Five Children and It (1902) and even more so The Story of the Amulet (1906), veer in that direction. Among Nesbit''s best-known books are The Story of the Treasure Seekers (1898), The Wouldbegoods (1899) and The Railway Children (1906). Other works include The Phoenix and the Carpet (1904), The Enchanted Castle (1907) and The Magic City (1910).

The Magic City (1910) is a children’s fantasy novel by English writer Edith Nesbit. Using elements of magic and mystery familiar to readers of her beloved Bastable and Psammead Trilogies, Nesbit crafts a tale of wonder and adventure for children and adults alike. Orphaned as a boy, Philip is cared for by his older sister Helen. When she marries and leaves for her honeymoon, Philip is sent to live at a country house known as the Grange with Lucy, his young stepsister. Sullen and out of place, Philip turns to his imagination for comfort, excitement, and adventure. Using whatever he can get his hands on—toys, books, kitchenware—Philip builds a city and invents for himself a fictional world he calls Polistarchia, which contains the city of Polistopolis, the Land of the Dwellers by the Sea, the Island, and the northern kingdom of Somnolentia. As he adds more and more to his city and the surrounding landscape, Philip is magically transported into the world of his creation. Discovered by soldiers, he learns of the fated arrival of two figures—the Deliverer and the Destroyer—and is told that by proving himself through a series of tasks, he will be named Deliverer of the realm. When Lucy arrives, however, he is forced to learn that sharing, though difficult, proves rewarding in the end. The Magic City is a timeless masterpiece of children’s fiction with a powerful message on grief, loneliness, and friendship. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Edith Nesbit’s The Magic City is a classic of English children’s literature reimagined for modern readers.

The Story of the Treasure Seekers (1899) is a children’s novel by English writer Edith Nesbit. The first book in Nesbit’s beloved Bastable trilogy—which also includes The Wouldbegoods (1901) and The New Treasure Seekers (1904)—The Story of the Treasure Seekers is a story of family, adventure, and mystery for children and adults alike. The Bastable siblings—Dora, Oswald, Dicky, Alice, Noel, and Horace Octavius—are clever and curious children who live with their widowed father. When their mother died, their father became ill and lost his successful business, forcing the family to live modestly. Inspired by stories of buried gold and jewels—and hoping to help their struggling father—the Bastable children decide to go searching for treasure. Their adventure soon takes them to London, where they abandon digging for the allure of paying work. The Bastables come up with several schemes to make money, including writing poetry, banditry, and starting a newspaper, in the process discovering the power of imagination and the true value of home. The Story of the Treasure Seekers is a masterpiece of children’s fiction from Edith Nesbit, one of the twentieth century’s children’s authors. Originally published as a series of stories in several different periodicals, The Story of the Treasure Seekers was Nesbit’s first novel for children. It would go on to influence both Arthur Ransome and C.S. Lewis, and is a favorite of J.K. Rowling’s. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Edith Nesbit’s The Story of the Treasure Seekers is a classic of English children’s literature reimagined for modern readers.

Five Children and IT is a children’s book, no. 1 of The Psammead cycle, written by Edit Nesbit and published in 1902. It has never been out of print since. The story begins when a group of children move from London to the countryside of Kent. The five children are Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane, and their baby brother, known as the Lamb. One day they are playing in a gravel pit when they uncover a rather grumpy, ugly, and occasionally malevolent Psammead – an ancient sand-fairy with ability to grant wishes. The Psammead persuades the children to take one wish each day to be shared among them, with the caveat that the wishes will turn to stone at sunset. This, apparently, used to be the rule in the Stone Age, when all that children wished for was food, the bones of which then became fossils. The children''s first wish is to be "as beautiful as the day". The wish ends at sunset and its effects simply vanish, leading the Psammead to observe that some wishes are too fanciful to be changed to stone. As expected, all the wishes go comically wrong. The children wish to be beautiful, but the servants do not recognise them and shut them out of the house. They wish to be rich, then find themselves with a gravel-pit full of gold spade guineas that no shop will accept as they were removed from circulation in 1816, so they can''t buy anything. A wish for wings seems to be going well, but at sunset the children find themselves stuck on top of a church bell tower with no way down, getting them into trouble with the gamekeeper who must take them home - and so the wishing and the ensuing adventures continue. The book was made into a film in 2004 featuring Freddie Highmore, Jonathan Bailey. Jessica Claridge, Poppy Rogers and Alec Muggleton, with Kenneth Branagh as Uncle Albert and Tara Fitzgerald as the mother. It has won a number of awards and been nominated for a Bafta. 10% of the profit from the sale of this book is donated to charities. ================= KEYWORDS/TAGS: Five children and It, 5, action, adventure, Beautiful, Golden Guineas, Wanted, Wings, Castle, No Dinner, Siege, Bed, Bigger, Baker''s Boy, Grown Up, Scalps, Last Wish, Psammead cycle, Glorious Rush, Round the Garden, Cyril, Anthea, Robert, Jane, little lamb, Door, Hutch, Scream, Baby, acknowledgement, Martha, Empty, Toilet-jug, pour Cold Water, falling Rain, Slow Drops, Anthea''s Face. Stagger, Mr. Beale, Snatch, Coin, Pocket, Martha, Policeman, Mr Peasemarsh, Lucky Children, Gravel Pit, Poof, Grab, Double-quick Time, Twinkling Legs, Two Gypsy Women, Sand-fairy, Blow, fly over, Rochester, Farmer, Pockets, Fast Asleep, The Keeper, Deep-Chested, Keyhole, Castle, Black, Stately, Drag, Reluctant, Tear, Splash, Moat-water, Leadhole, Sammyadd, Haystack, Strange Sensation, Pony-carriage, Giant, Pale and Trembling, Time''s Up, Case, Garden Spade, Tickling His Nose, Twig, Honeysuckle, Bicycle, Punctured State, Evidence, Struggle, Missionary Box, Poker, Pow-wow, Bright Knives, Brandished, Clasp, Loving Arms, Obedient, Burrow, Disappear, Scratching,

Differentiated book- It has a historical context with research of the time-Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; August 15, 1858 - May 4, 1924) was an English author and poet; she published her children''s books under the name E. Nesbit. He wrote or collaborated in more than 60 children''s literature books. He was also a political activist and co-founded the Fabian Society, a socialist organization that later joined the Labor Party. Nesbit was born in 1858 at 38 Lower Kennington Lane in Kennington, Surrey (now classified as Inner London), the daughter of an agricultural chemist, John Collis Nesbit, who died in March 1862, before his fourth birthday. The ill health of his sister Mary meant that the family traveled for some years, living in Brighton, Buckinghamshire, France (Dieppe, Rouen, Paris, Tours, Poitiers, Angouleme, Bordeaux, Arcachon, Pau, Bagnères-de-Bigorre and Dinanen Brittany. ).Spain and Germany, before settling for three years at Halstead Hall in Halstead in north-west Kent, a place that later inspired The Railway Children (this distinction has also been claimed by the city of New Mills in Derbyshire). When Nesbit was seventeen, the family moved back to London, living in South East London in Eltham, Elswick Road in Lewisham, Grove Park, and Lee.

When Father is taken away unexpectedly, Roberta, Peter, Phyllis, and their mother have to leave their comfortable life in London to go and live in a small cottage in the country. The children seek solace in the nearby railway station, and make friends with Perks the Porter and the Station Master himself. Each day, Roberta, Peter, and Phyllis run down the field to the railway track and wave at the passing London train, sending their love to Father. Little do they know that the kindly old gentleman passenger who waves back holds the key to their father''s disappearance.