The Wish

by Gail Carson Levine

Wilma Sturtz is invisible and miserable at school. So when an old lady on the subway offers her a wish, Wilma immediately asks for popularity -- in fact, she asks to be the most popular kid at school. Suddenly, Wilma has more friends than she can keep track of, forty dates to the Grad Night Dance, and a secret admirer writing her love poems. Everything is great, until she realizes there's a loophole in her wish, and her time in the spotlight has almost run out.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Fiction, Childrens, Romance, Fairy Tales

243 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published May 3, 2000

About the author

Just letting you all know: I'm only going to review books I love. There's enough negative criticism without me piling on. A book is too hard to write.

Gail Carson Levine grew up in New York City and began writing seriously in 1987. Her first book for children, Ella Enchanted, was a 1998 Newbery Honor Book. Levine's other books include Fairest; Dave at Night, an ALA Notable Book and Best Book for Young Adults; The Wish; The Two Princesses of Bamarre; and the six Princess Tales books. She is also the author of the nonfiction book Writing Magic: Creating Stories That Fly and the picture book Betsy Who Cried Wolf, illustrated by Scott Nash. Gail, her husband, David, and their Airedale, Baxter, live in a 1790 farmhouse in the Hudson River Valley of New York State.

Reviews

[emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

i cannot fathom why this book, which changed the life of not only myself but also BOTH of my sisters, has such a low average rating.

this is a classic work of philosophy, as far as i'm concerned. a lesson on morality that is not rivaled by a single religious text. an absolute, in other words, game changer.

also my sisters and i were total losers so this helped by providing a whole "i wouldn't want to be popular ANYWAY" justification.

and for all the moms who reviewed this in fits of horror at the idea of an eighth grader having a boyfriend she makes out with: i read this in elementary school and would remain imperceptible to the male eye for years to come. it's fine.

part of a project i'm doing where i review books i read a long time ago, and touch on paragons of literature at the same time

[aisha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite book from this author, but an OK read. I could have done without all the kissy-kissy boyfriend stuff, since what 8th grade girl needs to have a boyfriend? Not what I want for my daughters. But the overall message of the book, to just be who you are and not focus on performing for people that you want to impress is a good one.

[Dann · Rating 4 out of 5]

{4.25 stars}

If I ever have children, Gail Carson Levine’s books will be required reading for them.

[Tori · Rating 1 out of 5]

I usually like books from this author- Ella Enchanted, Fairest, etc. But this one was horrible.

A fairy gives a wish to a girl who wants to be popular. Then, as that happens, she realizes that she really doesn't have to act different and that being popular can mean a lot of things- such as, just being nice to other people or helping those who are in need. It seems that the author is really showing that people can be liked just for being who they are. But, at the end when the spell wears off, no one likes her anymore. So what's the moral of that story?

Then, she's an 8th grader who gets a boyfriend and their plan for their second date is to find a secluded place to kiss... which they do, for a full hour. This is children's literature. Do kids need to be reading this?

To top it all off... here are a few excerpts from the back of the cover. "A modern-day fairy tale by the autor of the..." and "the most popular girl at claverford Junior High." and "someone is even writing her love poetry. life is like a fairy tale..." What happened to capitalizing proper names and the first word of a sentence, let alone using spell check. (I realize that this is an editing problem vs. the actual writing, but it just adds to my frustration.)

I usually donate the children's books I read to the school, but this one belongs in the recycling bin.

[Eva Femia · Rating 4 out of 5]

this book is So Middle School (neutral)

[Sparrow · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ms. Hannah must've secretly despised Wilma, and with malice aforethought read Wilma's creative writing essay out loud to the class, knowing full well that doing so would tank Wilma's already tenuous social standing and force her into full-on pariah status. In this essay I will

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just reread this! Well, more like skimmed through, as I often do with books I've already read. It's still a great read (I tend to change my mind about novels I liked/didn't like as I grow older, but this one stays the same). Wilma is a very lovable character. I recommend The Wish to children (mostly girls) of age +11.

...and I still haven't gotten around to reading more of Gail Carson Levine's works. Ah, so many books, so little time! If I could, I think I'd read every single book currently existing on the planet. Except Chemistry books, of course (the horror!).

~*~*~*~

I think this was actually the first YA book I've ever read. For fun, I mean. Not for school. Like The Hobbit and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Not that I didn't enjoy those too but...you know what I mean. :D

Anyway, I really, really liked this book. I'm definitely going to read more of Gail Carson Levine's books. :)

[Debbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever since her Language Arts teacher read her journal to her class, Wilma has become worse than simply unnoticed. Everyone makes fun of her and she is shunned even by the other outsiders. One day, Wilma does something nice for an old woman, who in turn grants Wilma one wish. Even though she thinks the old woman is crazy, she makes a wish--to be the most popular kid at school. Suddenly, Wilma has more friends than she knows what to do with. But there's a catch...

The Wish is a cute story, perfect for younger readers. The message is good for middle school students looking for a place to fit--those who are worthy of your love and friendship will appreciate you for who you are, not for who you pretend to be.

[Jan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book intended for middle-school girls, but fairly shallow ones. Not all middle-school girls think popularity and boyfriends and kissing are the most important things in the world.

A bit magical, as most of Levine's books are, this one is about an unpopular girl who has a wish granted by a fairy. Her wish -- to be the most popular girl in her middle school -- inevitably comes to an end when middle school ends, and she must go to high school. Will she still have friends? Will she still keep her boyfriend who kisses her on every street corner? Will she learn that she is a good person whether she is popular or not? A rather hackneyed plot, and not anywhere near as good a book as Ella Enchanted, or many of Gail Carson Levine's books.

[Ali D · Rating 4 out of 5]

You know what? This was better than I remember. I reread this book soooo many times when I was younger, and it felt so nostalgic in the best way possible

[abthebooknerd]

Saw this book at work today, and it TOTALLY took me way back to 7th grade. It's crazy, what books can do! From what I remember, I enjoyed it LOL.

[Emma C. Sutherland · Rating 1 out of 5]

Look. I generally LOVE books. Sooo whenever I find a rare book that I DONT like, I have to write a review to justify why I didn’t like it

For one I did NOT like the characters. The MC was super shallow and boring, not to mention extremely immature and kind of a jerk. I’m only a few months older than her in the book and I can tell you that NONE of the girls around my age (that I know) act like what Wilma and her peers act like.

There was also the romantic subplot which was EXTREMELY boring and unneeded. Not to mention they sound like fifth graders the entire time.

The writing style was kind of flat too… a lot of telling and not showing. He said, she said, he shook his head, she walked back into the room, he thought etc.

Overall it just wasn’t enjoyable for me, but ofc I finished it bc I HATE dnfing books lol 🤣

If you loved this book im happy for you! It just wasn’t my thing and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone else *shrug*

[Kat Hooper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Will review at Fantasy Literature.

[Jaina Rose · Rating 1 out of 5]

This review is also available on my blog, Read Till Dawn.

The first time I started this book was probably about five years ago, when I had just finished Ella Enchanted for the first time and was devouring everything by Gail Carson Levine that I could get my hands on. I only "started" it, not "finished," however, because the boy-girl stuff got too icky for me. I put the book down halfway through, told myself never to read it, and moved on to the infinitely superior Fairest.

This summer, however, I forgot just how much I'd disliked The Wish; I figured my disgusted reaction all those years ago was just because of my age (all twelve years olds think romance is icky, right?), and that now I was finally old enough to read and enjoy this book by the author of several of my favorite books.

Then I started reading again, and only finished because it was late and I was at my aunt's house and I didn't have anything else to read. The "girl-boy stuff" truly was too much (Wilma and her new boyfriend - both not even in high school - go to the park, lie on a blanket, and kiss passionately for over an hour after dating for like two days. I can only assume this is where I stopped last time). Reading past that to finishing the rest of the book, though, I also realized that Wilma is frankly just unlikeable. She's so obsessed with being popular that she doesn't even care that people only like her because they're being forced to. She claims to feel bad about it, and apologizes when they find out and are mad, but when given the chance she's still perfectly ready to force them back into being her friends-on-command. How can I like or respect someone like that?

Gah, I don't know what else to say. I really just want to get this review written so I can stop thinking about The Wish. I hate writing negative reviews, but I had to write this one. Please, steer clear of this particular book by Gail Carson Levine. And if you've read it and found more to like than I did, please take the time to explain to me what there is to like here.

[Serena.. Sery-ously? · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

Mentre sistemo un libro - arrampicata a metà tra la scrivania e la sedia con le ruote (*Prossimo obiettivo: rompersi l'osso del collo nel modo più cretino possibile perché sono troppo pigra per prendere la scala*) - ecco che l'occhio malandrino mi cade sull'autrice di questo libro: 'Gail Carson Levine'.
Gail.. Gail.. Ma quella stessa Gail di cui mi sono innamorata con Ella Enchanted? Cioè io nella mia vita passata avevo già letto un suo libro e non ho mai fatto il collegamento??
URGE UNA RILETTURA!
E quindi non c'è stato niente da fare, che importa se avevo SEI libri in lettura, un posto per Gail si trova sempre!!

Dunque, se non avete mai letto nulla di Gail Carson Levine e vi venisse voglia di iniziare da questo, leggete invece Ella enchanted (In italiano 'Il dono della fata'.. No, ma traduciamo i titoli con Google translate, eh!), che è l'amore!! (sono una brutta persona se pubblicizzo spudoratamente un libro mentre ne recensisco un altro?!)
Quando poi avrete recuperato l'ignominiosa lacuna, questo romanzo sarà qui ad aspettarvi :3
E' una storia molto carina e anche molto dolce, con una protagonista INTELLIGENTE (olè! Merce rara, rarissima..) e con la testa sulle spalle che, pur desiderando di essere la ragazza più popolare della scuola, saprà fare delle buone scelte!!!
Si fa leggere ad occhi chiusi, ma lascia una bella sensazione addosso, garantito!

PS: niente, sono sempre più convinta che la serie "Le ragazzine" nasconda al suo interno alcune chicche incredibili.. Peccato il formato/la presentazione tengano lontano i più!!!

[Necia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story has a good premise though I am glad I read it before letting my middle schooler dive right in. This book is about kids at the end of 8th grade who are looking to what their futures in high school could be. I felt that the boyfriend/girlfriend scenarios and kissing scenes were a bit much and overdone for my child to be reading without my being forewarned.
This was one book that I felt was more of a flop than the spectacular piece of writing it could have been. I liked the main idea for the book but was disappointed in the way the main character, who seemed so relatable at first, derived so much of her personal value from having a boyfriend. Some of her character development comes from realizing some of her assumptions are false but she still doesn't convince me as a reader that she would be ok with herself without the boyfriend. I felt that this important element was really lacking. Yes, I remember well the shallow years of middle school and the petty things that seemed so important during that phase of life. When giving my middle grade child a book, I feel that it should be a book that helps them to see that they are just like other people in the ways that matter and that the feelings and experiences they are going through are relatable. I also feel as a parent that literature can be an amazing teaching tool for helping youth to come to realizations about themselves and the world around them at a deeper level and in ways that they may not grasp as quickly without the use of narrative. This book in my opinion came up lacking much of what it could have been as a teaching tool.

[Kelly DeLeon · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest I had very high expectations for this book. This book was recommended by a good friend of mine and the plot of this novel is very creative. In the book William is given the chance to make a wish. When she wishes to be the most popular girl in her school the path of the story opens many doors. Later, there would be a hiccup to her wish which would make her realize that you would be careful of what you wish for. Although, in the end I was quite disappointed how the story carried on. It didn't live up to its full potential as a story. I would say it was a very ordinary book. There wasn't much spark or drive to the plot. On the contrary the characters seemed to their own unique and quirky personalities making it fun to see how they react to certain scenarios. Also, this story did make it seem realistic on how an outcast would react to a sudden growth in social status. All in all, this book wasn't the best I have ever read, and far from it. Personally I won't recommend this book because it seemed too dull for my taste.

[HeavyReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book by Gail Carson Levine is different from many of her books that I've read (and I do seem to be on a kick of reading a whole lot by this author). For one thing, the setting is contemporary NYC, not a magical, mythical kingdom that seems to be somewhere in the medieval past. Secondly, the main character is not a princess or otherwise royal. She's just a regular eighth grade girl.

However, like with other books by Gail Carson Levine, there is magic, a fairy (or a witch, it's never fully explained), and a lesson to be learned.

The lesson here is one about popularity, with a sublesson of being true to one's self. I think both lessons are presented well, no preaching, but the point comes across.

I enjoyed this one, which is medium size, by the way.

[Alisha]

While I didn’t personally enjoy this book (um, a lot of kissing, and doing so laying down? With a juvenile fiction rating/category?)— it had some social aspects that had my oldest kids enthralled during a cold, lonely January during the Covid-19 pandemic. It’s been a few months since we have had a good read a loud, so at least they all wanted to hear a few chapters each night.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great book. Very entertaining.

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very, very fast read. Finished in under 2 days. Very good book about if we really want to be popular.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was okay, but it was a lot of fluff in my opinion. I'd say stick to her more fictional fantasy.

[Elinor Loredan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A little too kissy for me, but it has good messages and thoughts on popularity and relationships.

[Lauren Sykes · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars ~

I can't believe she brought her dog to a sleepover. Not a good look Wilma.

[Coralie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've wanted to read this book since I was a kid. I love Ella Enchanted and The Two Princesses of Bamarre, among other of her books. Somehow I heard about this book from one of her other books (backmatter maybe?), but I never found a copy. Not in libraries or bookstores. And this was before online book shopping. But last year, I happened across a copy in a used bookstore - with the original cover even! I genuinely felt like I'd won the lottery. I was super excited, and I'm still thankful to have it to complete my collection.

Contemporary fiction isn't my favorite, but like I said, I've been curious about this book for years and the premise has a little bit of a magical twist. It also feels squarely in the Middle Grade range. I think I might have liked the book better if I'd read it when I was in middle school, and I think modern middle school girls would relate to the story still. The themes of popularity, friendship, and identity are still core middle school issues that are relevant today.

Wilma is quirky and in her awkward middle school phase, which is relatable on so many levels. I liked that she'd moved around so much because that was my experience as a kid too. I was the new kid more times than I can count and just when I'd started to make friends, we'd move again. So, I empathized with Wilma. Making friends is hard, no matter your age! So, when she's given the opportunity to be popular, it makes sense that she clings to it.

The way the story unfolded was fun and the side characters were spot on. The setting and situations Wilma and her classmates got themselves into made me a little nostalgic. And the mysterious old lady definitely stirred things up a little.

Aside from this not being my normal cup of tea genre and not being the target audience, I also didn't love some of the more...gross (for lack of a better word) moments. It isn't crude or gratuitous in a romantic or sexual way, but the opening threw me off and may have set a negative tone for me for the whole book (a few lines about dogs using the restroom). A few similar descriptions just made me wrinkle my nose. Also, the secondhand embarrassment in this book was REAL! There were some uncomfortable moments, but honestly, I imagine that was intentional for the tone of the book, the characters, and the plot.

Content: there were no swear words and there was no violence. But there was a fair bit of kissing with some mildly descriptive kisses that I didn't quite expect. Again, nothing beyond a kiss, but it felt a little heavy to me and I didn't love it. Thematically, the book deals with bullying and mean girls, etc. Probably suitable for 14+

[Regina Hough]

I really didn't enjoy what I have read of this book. It was really gross. Badly written. And a waste of my time. I always hate putting a book on didn't finish. Most the time when I put on Didn't finish it usually means I will just read it another time. But Im not going to pick this one up again. I was disappointed, I really liked the idea of the book...

[Miguel Nava · Rating 1 out of 5]

Este libro se me hizo lo más tonto que he leído este año, y es justo lo que necesitaba.
Premisa de niñas de secundaria queriendo ser popular y su deseo se cumple y.... sii así como lo imaginan así acaba!
Ya me hacía falta leer este tipo de lecturas para relajar la mente un rato.

[Z · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember reading this in ~5th grade and not understanding what an "anchorwoman" was. I thought it was a title for someone who was in charge of a ship's anchor.

[Meg Cook · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm sick and reading GCL has healing qualities. Man, middle school is tough.

[Mydogs · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of my favorites!!!