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Hapenny Magick #1

Hapenny Magick

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As the littlest Hapenny, a race of little people, Maewyn Bridgepost spends her days from breakfast to midnight nibble scrubbing the hearth, slopping the pigs, and cooking for her guardian, Gelbane, who never spares a kind word. Mae dreams of her long-lost mother, the day she can be rid of Gelbane and finding a life worth living. As if life as a servant wasn't bad enough, Mae learns that Gelbane is a troll-and Hapennies are a troll delicacy.Years ago, a spell on the bridge trapped Gelbane in Mae's village. Ever since, Gelbane has been chiseling away the magic protections and now Mae's home is destined to become a smorgasbord for half-starved trolls. It will take all of Mae's courage to protect her village. When pitchforks, sewing needles, pots, pans, brooms and a little magick are the only weapons at hand, Mae finds out that great victories can be accomplished no matter what size you are, but only if you stick together.

Unknown Binding

First published November 30, 2011

1 person is currently reading
769 people want to read

About the author

Jennifer Carson

19 books45 followers
Jennifer Carson lives in Michigan with her husband, four sons and many four legged friends. She grew up on a steady diet of Muppet movies, and renaissance faires and would occasionally be caught reading under the blankets with a flashlight. Besides telling tales, Jennifer likes to create fantasy creatures and characters and publishes her own sewing patterns. Her artwork and patterns can be seen online at thedragoncharmer.com.

Jennifer’s work has been featured in national magazines like Cloth, Paper, Scissors, Faerie Magazine, Soft Dolls and Animals, and Dolls United. In the spring of 2008, Jennifer was featured on the ABC affiliate, WMUR tv show, New Hampshire Chronicle. Her sewing patterns have recently been translated in Dutch and in April 2009, she received the NE-SCBWI Ruth Landers Glass Scholarship for her writing.

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5 stars
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15 (21%)
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9 (12%)
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
Profile Image for B.C..
Author 7 books21 followers
March 1, 2012
I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads.

This book was an absolute delight. If I were to compare it to a dessert it would be poached pears, very light and just enough sugar to curb the sweet tooth.

As I said in my status update, this book was written to be read aloud. The structure made me feel like I was a kid listening to my 2nd grade teacher reading to my class (you know the one who was really good at theatrical pauses and emphasis as she swept her free hand out engaging the young minds). This would be perfect for that teacher. It is longer than I thought it would be (200 pages) but it does not drag at any point.

There was some violence that I was unexpected, but nothing too bad. It would have been just fine without the violence. I am just not a good judge of what is acceptable for kids as I am not a father yet.

I loved the simple world building. It was complete without being cluttered with details.

The characters were wonderful. I liken the main character to that little girl at church who has the pretty little dress on with impeccable manners that wraps you around her finger without trying. I loved the character design of the wizards and the trolls. The different types of Magick helped with characterization and history.

The art that was added to the book was beautiful. The author did a great job with her description, but the art was magnificent and helped support my minds construction of the world given the simple details.

This book is an easy read and I recommend it to anyone who likes light children’s stories and/or good story telling.
Profile Image for Melanie.
430 reviews32 followers
February 27, 2012
A Delightful read. It is about a young Hapenny who discovers that some things are not as they seem while she finds her place in the world. The story is full of familiar magical beings such as wizards, trolls, hapennys, and even a giant. The storyline is inspiring, but will also bring some laughts. The story is geared toward elementary aged children, but teens can enjoy it too. Altogether this book is a great read.
Profile Image for C.S. Einfeld.
Author 1 book67 followers
February 2, 2012
Well.

It was a snowy night in January when I curled up with Hapenny Magick and, I'm glad to say, it warmed my heart, indeed.

What a charming book! I must pause here for a moment to rave about the illustrations. They are, in short, breath-taking. The whimsy of Jennifer's voice is infused into Pat Ann's illustrations. Her characters really come to life--and what characters they are!

Mean, spiteful Gelbane, the Guardian of our feisty heroine, Maewyn, storms off the page and Callum, the wizard, has a beard so flowing, I swear it really did tickle my nose ;o).

This brings me to the book, itself: a more engrossing adventure for children, I have not read, in years. Hapenny Magick is a somewhat traditional tale, with poor orphaned Maewyn left at the clutches of evil Gelbane at the start, but she is no shrinking violet waiting for her Prince to save the day. No. When a strange, talking crow lures her away from enslavement to the comparative bliss of a Wood Wizard's cozy home, Mae discovers that, small as she may be, her destiny is great.

I don't want to ruin the story by leaving any spoilers, but some of the things I love best about Mae are her courage, sense of duty, and sense of self-reliance. Before it's over, Mae needs to save herself, her friends, and her whole village from an army of hungry Trolls, and it'll take more than just her magickal talents, to do it.

Does Mae find the strength to persevere and triumph? I'll leave you to find out.

Hapenny Magick is a thoroughly engaging, lovely fairy tale for children of all ages. Jennifer's skillful prose weaves Magick and whimsy into every line. What a joy it was to read this book.
Profile Image for Kristen.
885 reviews
June 8, 2012
This was such a cute, charming little book. I look forward to reading this to my future kids. Little Maewyn was so adorable. You connect to and love her right from the beginning.

I really enjoyed all the different characters. The descriptions were very good, and the illustrations left no doubt on any of the detail.

The world was a lot of fun. It's a short book (193 pages...with illustrations), but she is able to build the world and give a beginning, middle and an end to the story. The story never dragged, and there was actually quite a bit of action in it.

I am such a fan of Happenies now! And I had no idea what they were before I read this book. And it also has trolls and giants, and pigs, chickens and crows. No shortage of characters! =)

It's a little violent with characters turning to stone and ashes and talk about characters being eaten...but when I look back on a lot of fairy tales I knew when I was little...that was actually pretty common (think Hanzel and Gretal). But I just wanted to warn just in case anyone doesn't want their child reading that. But it is such a cute little book!

I think everyone should take a moment to read this book. It's such a fast, easy read, and you cannot help but smile while you're reading it. I look forward to reading the next installment in Maewyn's adventures soon!
Profile Image for Tonja Drecker.
Author 3 books241 followers
May 2, 2014
Cute! Yes, I'll just say it again: Cute!

This is a fun, enchanting story about a very special magical species known as Hapenny's. These adorable creatures live peacefully in the forest. . .well, it's not that great for the smallest Hapenny Mae. She toils and works her little fingers off for Gelbane, a Hapenny who took her in after Mae's mother died.

I loved this magical world! It's so simple and sweet, but still captured the world masterly. I had no trouble picturing it and was quickly pulled into the lush surroundings. Mae was a wonderful character, fragile yet strong. Her good nature and golden heart make her lovable from the first page on. Although she comes across a little naive in the beginning, she grows with the task and danger. It was fun to root for her, fever for her and feel for her when things didn't always work out the way they should.

Summoned up: A great story for kids! The world is innocent but mixed with just enough danger to keep one turning from one page to the next. In the end, one wishes they were a Hapenny themselves or at least, would have the chance to visit them.
99 reviews
December 17, 2011
Twelve-year-old Mae is the smallest of the Hapennies, furry-eared elfin people who live in the Wedge, a village protected by runes from Hapenny-eating trolls. Then the runes begin to fail. With the help of a dotty kitchen witch and a wizardess whose main talent is shape-shifting into a pig, Mae must discover hidden magick to save her people from a troll invasion. Quick-paced high fantasy with a charming, plucky heroine. Beautiful illustrations.
Profile Image for Nikki.
63 reviews43 followers
June 20, 2012
I was lucky enough to win this book on First Reads. :) The author even wrote a sweet message in it for me, thank you, Jennifer!

I took advantage of a lazy afternoon over the weekend to curl up and enjoy this book. I adored all the artwork and found it to be a charming, sweet story. Like many other reviewers have mentioned, it reminded me of reading a story with my mother and that just endears it even more to me. I have already sent it to my 10 year old niece to enjoy with my sister.
111 reviews
May 7, 2014
First Reads winner.
Mae-Wins! A magical, adventurous journey into a fantasy world of "Hapennys" and the trolls who eat them. Maewyn a tiny Hapenny and charming , clever protagonist with courage, magic and friends save and protect her village. Would recommend as a read and share aloud book to children. Some dark poignant moments ends on a satisfying positive warm note. Illustrations are enchanting.
Profile Image for Lori Weller.
323 reviews18 followers
May 5, 2012
I found this book to be equally pleasing to young and adult alike. It does have some changing of figures to ash which may upset the really young. But I found it a pleasant change from the adult genre that is typically read. I enjoyed the illustrations- finding them to be close to the story line. Overall, I found it a pleasant change.
Profile Image for Theresa.
1,591 reviews46 followers
May 14, 2021
First of all, I must start off with myself finding out this book was a Kickstarter project and independently published. Shame on every publisher who turned this story down!

Mae is a Hapenny which is like a tiny faery folk. Both of her parents are gone and the horrible Gelbane is her guardian. Only really weird things keep happening around Mae. Purple egg yokes, knots that come untied, pigs that follow the sound of her flute.

Well it turns out that Mae has magick. It's up to her and her new friends Aletta ( who is sonetimes a pig) and Callum to save The Wedge( Mae's village) from the invading trolls.

The illustrations are breathtaking and help bring this magical story of love and friendship to life.

I think this story is a little scary because the trolls eat hapennys. The trolls are trying to break down the protection spell so they can get in and eat them. It turns out the two of their ranks have been eaten. So maybe read this to not so delicate children.
Profile Image for Gabs .
487 reviews78 followers
June 22, 2015
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Well, maybe it was a bad idea to read this. Middle grade fantasy has proven to not be my thing, unless it’s the Chronicles of Narnia, in which case I read it again and again. But…the cover. It’s just so cute. I couldn’t resist.
The bad thing about Hapenny Magick is basically the bad thing, for me, about almost all other MG fantasies. It’s just too sweet and black and white for my liking, and the whole plot always seems like a children’s cartoon version of a watered-down Grimm fairy tale.

First, we have the main character, Mae, who is a kind-hearted little hapenny with a cruel mistress and a nice little friend named Callum. She’s kind to animals. She’s obedient. There isn’t a bad trait in her body, even though she has every reason to act out at times, seeing as her mother has mysteriously disappeared and her mistress, Gelbane, mistreats her. You know, I really hate to use the word Mary Sue to describe Mae, but if the tiny hapenny shoe fits...
She’s just so perfect. She’s not really given very much of a personality, but the little that she is given just irks me with its perfection. I sound so grumpy right now, I realize that, but man. It was just so sweet it seemed false.

Then there’s Gelbane. She’s ugly and rude and cruel. The epitome of a fairy tale villain; even the illustrations of her look just as you would expect. She might as well have been made out of cardboard.
The plot, too, is very predictable. It’s quite easy to see who will be the villain, who will be the hero, and key plot twists are apparent from some of the first pages. I have to say, I was rather disappointed.

The final thing that annoyed me were the illustrations. Out of all the things I did not like in the book, this is the one that may be much more “it’s not you, it’s me” than anything. It’s just that they don’t have the charming quality of the cover, and the pictures of Mae only slightly resemble the girl on the cover! Plus, I just don’t like pictures in books most of the time. It’s just not my thing.

I was really disappointed in Hapenny Magick. On the bright side, it couldn’t have taken me more than forty five minutes to read, so it’s not like I really had to labor to finish it. That was about the most positive aspect of the book for me, sadly.
Profile Image for Patricia Reding.
Author 6 books163 followers
December 31, 2014
Reviewed for Readers' Favorite at www.ReadersFavorite.com.

Now and again, one of those stories for children (who are relatively new readers seeking a “chapter book”) comes along that is truly worthy of attention. Hapenny Magick, by Jennifer Carson, is just such a story. From the lovely cover art and internal pictures, to the storyline itself, this journey is sure to please young readers. In it, we meet Mae, a “hapenny,” or little person. Mae’s mother, now missing, left Mae with only an old (magic!) flute and a pendant. Left in the care of a guardian, Gelbane, a screeching, domineering woman (troll?), Mae is forced to work hard on Gelbane’s little pig farm. When strange things start happening, Mae leaves the pigs with which she sleeps, to follow a talking bird through the woods and to the home of the wizard, Callum. Although he and Aletta, another wizard, try to help Mae, she returns to Gelbane’s in the hopes that her mother will return there one day. But magick intrudes on the little village, and eventually, Mae returns to the wizard’s home. Then, with their help, she and the other hapennies are faced with a battle to free themselves from the trolls who seek to take over the village and to eat them.

Hapenny Magick met all the requirements I would have for recommending a story to young readers. It is creative, fun, interesting, and a story with which young readers are bound to identify. From a parent’s perspective, it offers even more: well-written prose and dialog, colorful word pictures (in addition to the interesting illustrations), and it is grammatically sound. While this may not be a serious issue for some, it is for me. It seems we spend a great deal of time trying to teach young children proper grammar, sentence structure, use of tense, and the like, then set them off to read stories that do not fit those criteria. Indeed, over the years, I did not recommend some (very) well-known stories to my children because I did not think they satisfactorily met these requirements. Parents need have no fear with Hapenny Magick. Moreover, they may recommend a story that provides children with some important life lessons, such as that the absence of a physical conflict is not the same as “peace,” and that working together can bring about the great results that one working alone may be unable to accomplish.
Profile Image for Laura Pauling.
Author 57 books290 followers
August 2, 2012
What a cute story!!! I wish I was an 8 year old girl again, or 10 year old, heck, any age!

Follow Maewyn on her magical adventure as she learns the terrible secret behind her mean guardian, as she strikes out on her own to learn magick with the help of two wizards and how to protect the villagers she loves. And hapennies are small, trolls are big, so Mae has quite the challenge to overcome! She learns about friendship and family and sacrifice.

Beautifully written, wonderful to read aloud or curl up in a corner to read on a rainy day, girls will love this story. If your daughter enjoys fairy stories, Kate Dicamillo, or Gail Carson Levine, they'll enjoy Hapenny Magick!
Profile Image for Wendy Brotherlin.
Author 2 books16 followers
July 1, 2014
I enjoyed this enchanting tale immensely. HAPENNY MAGICK follows Maewyn Bridgepost, the smallest Hapenny of them all, who discovers she can wield magic. She soon finds herself in the company of a pair of wizards and on an adventure of a lifetime.

Just like the fairy tales of old, HAPENNY MAGICK doesn't glance over the darker elements in the story. The author strikes just the right balance between whimsy and villainy as the tale unfolds, which kept me hooked. The illustrations are lovely too and they capture the essence of the book at a glance.

Full of whimsy and wonder, this novel is perfect for any lover of fantasy--young or old.
Profile Image for Joyce.
Author 5 books25 followers
February 6, 2012
I loved this story! The illustrations are wonderful.

Maewyn may be the smallest of the small, but she has so much heart and determination on her side. When she learns the terrible secret to her brutally mean guardian, and finds out that she has magick she finds two wizards to teach her how to use it to protect the villagers she loves. Through all of her travails, Maewyn learns about friendship and family and sacrifice.

Beautifully written. If you enjoy fairytales, then you'll enjoy Hapenny Magick!
Profile Image for Michelle.
153 reviews
August 4, 2016
Super adorable fantasy book with a cute and likable, young **female** heroine! Although the story was a bit predictable for a well read adult (or even a well read youngster), this would make a great introduction to the genre for the young reader. Brings to mind fare such as The Hobbit, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. Well written and easy to read, and has some delightful illustrations! I loved this book from start to finish! So glad I asked for this for Christmas! Now, on to the second installment!!!
Profile Image for Ariel.
1,940 reviews42 followers
December 8, 2015
A little like The Hobbit, a little like The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall, with a liberal dash of Cinderella mixed in. Sweet though perhaps a little too sweet. Lovely delicate illustrations. I gather it is self published and it would have benefited from a professional editor, especially in the dialogue. Still, enjoyable escapist reading.
Profile Image for Kayce.
10 reviews
August 1, 2012
I received this book free from a Goodreads giveaway.

This book was a great for a light read. The illustrations are beautiful and great for children.
202 reviews
July 29, 2013
This was a cute read for fourth/fifth grade students.
Profile Image for Valeria Fuentes.
162 reviews9 followers
April 17, 2015
Es un lindo libro. Creo que si hubiera sido una niña pequeña (7 a 8 años) lo hubiera disfrutado aún más.
357 reviews29 followers
January 16, 2015
Boy what a cute book. Wish my greatgrand
children were closer. I would read the book
to them. All about hapennies, trolls wizards,
etc. Really enjoyed the book.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews