60 pages 2 hours read

Edward Eager, N. M. Bodecker, Alice Hoffman

Half Magic

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 1954

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Essay Topics

1.

Half Magic often employs intertextuality. Two of the works mentioned are A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court (1889) and Five Little Peppers and How They Grew (1881). When does these texts appear in the narrative? How do they relate to the novel’s plot and themes?

2.

Choose three literary devices that feature in Half Magic and discuss how they enrich and shape the narrative. Provide textual evidence to support your argument.

3.

Miss Bick is a minor character, yet she is a constant throughout the narrative. How does her presence reinforce one or more themes from the story? Use evidence from the novel to support your thinking.