Magykal Papers

Septimus Heap #7.5

by Angie Sage

A hugely inventive miscellany packed with enticing secrets and facts about the world of Septimus Heap, sumptuously illustrated throughout

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Magic, Middle Grade, Childrens, High Fantasy

176 pages, Hardcover

First published June 23, 2009

About the author

Angie Sage (born 1952) is the author of the Septimus Heap series which includes Magyk, Flyte, Physik, Queste, Syren, Darke and Fyre. She also wrote the Todhunter Moon series, and the Magykal Papers, an additional book with extra information about Septimus' world. She is also the illustrator and/or writer of many children's books, and is the new writer of the Araminta Spookie series.

Angie Sage grew up in Thames Valley, London and Kent. Her father was a publisher. He would bring home blank books that she could fill with pictures and stories. Sage first studied medicine, but changed her mind and went to Art School in Leicester. There she studied Graphic Design and Illustration. She began illustrating books after college. Then she progressed to writing children stories, including toddler books and chapter books. Her first novel was Septimus Heap: Magyk. Angie Sage is married and has two daughters, Laurie and Lois.

Reviews

[Sara Saif · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was absolutely brilliant! The illustrations, biographies, journal entries, everything was RAD. I had been stroking this book creepily since the day I bought it about a month ago. It took 6 books to get here but I made it. It was worth it!

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm calling this a "bonus book" because it's along the same lines as J. K. Rowling's "Quidditch Through the Ages"; more information for those that love the series. This book, in contrast to the first two Rowling bonus books, does not look as cheaply made as possible. (Ms. Rowling's writing was great, but I think Scholastic printed those books for $0.0001 each.) It's all in full-color, and includes bios and portraits of main characters, maps of various locations, brochures and pamphlets about various Castle attractions, spells, and diary excerpts. For anyone who's ever wanted to go live in the world of Septimus Heap, this book will be a treat.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a wonderful addition to the series, packed with info about the castle and its inhabitants. The full history of many of the traditions are included, as are some of the personal diaries for the lead characters. The humour and attention to detail is spot on!

[Dana Salman · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting and fun, but doesn't give any added insight into the world of Magyk. Also I'm kinda disappointed that there wasn't a page about Spitfyre (lol). In any case, I don't think it's a must-read for Septimus Heap fans; it tells you stuff you already know if you've read the first four books. Pretty much it paraphrases the series. While it's fun to read characters' diary entries and look at beautiful, detailed illustrations of certain places you can't find on the maps in the books, it's a real downer to find that Angie Sage couldn't have used the extra time she had writing this book (and the paper) to include things beyond what you could infer from the books, such as what J.K Rowling did with Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. It's books like these that make me wish Dubai had a decent library so I wouldn't waste my money on books I know I'm not going to be re-perusing very often.

[Danielle. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I forgot I had this book. I read it years ago and loved it. Felt like I was smacked in the medieval era. Only problem: I have not yet read the series for this book.

[Miryeo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of course, this is a must for Septimus Heap fans. The Magykal Papers is a book containing news clippings, pamphlets, diary entries, letters, notices, and official receipts of the people and places in the Septimus Heap world.

Angie Sage does not forget to add the lovable wit found in her Septimus Heap books, so it was a very enjoyable read. But I found that I couldn't pore over it like I did with the other books; mostly the pages are presented as information, not as stories, so it seemed tiring to read everything in one go.

Unlike supplementary books in other series, The Magykal Papers does not really add any new story. Some parts are backstories--what happened with the characters and the places before the events in the first book. And I'm not talking about deep backstories; mostly they are already included in the original books, just in less detail. Some parts are about what the characters were thinking/doing during certain events in the books. While interesting to know, they are nothing new and I would've expected that those characters were thinking/doing those things anyway. Basically, most of what I read here were small, additional details to stories I already know. (Of course, there were some exceptions.)

What I liked was how the news clippings and pamphlets made the Septimus Heap world more vivid. Reading the book felt like going on a tour of the Castle, which was really fun! XD Readers get to learn about the notable places in the Castle, and even meet some new characters relating to those places (or I just forgot they were mentioned in the books).

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes a series can lead to fun, entertaining or informational add-on books. Sometimes they can't. The Septimus Heap series is definitely one that could! The book design was awesome and everything was written in the same tone as the books so that if you read the books, you can recognize the characters because they are exactly as you have come to expect them to be. It's not a book that can be read in one sitting, though. Because there isn't a storyline, it's most enjoyed when read a page or two at a time. My only complaint is that this book had to change my mental images of the Heap family. The only one that was drawn as I picture him is Simon! It's funny how we can all read the same story but imagine it so differently. My favorite part focused on the Ramblings. I loved it!

[Lexii Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a lovely add-on to the Septimus Heap Series! The book is all done with beautiful illustrations on glossy paper, and it gives a great insight to some extra things that might be going on when Septimus isn't fighting against his enemies. It contained diary entries from some of the main characters, a detailed description of how magyk came to be and other cute pages, which added to the imagination. This book really helps you envision the town and the palace and the ramblings. Definitely worth getting if you're a fan of Septimus Heap. But, it's also a great book to get if you're considering starting the series. There aren't too many spoilers in there, and it gives a direct understanding of the characters and their roles in the books.

[Cammie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got it for christmas and i'd finished by the 27th! Really fun, loved it! In a way it's a behind the scene of the Septimus Heap series, it tells about:- storys of a lot of importent and less importent characters
- all about goshthood
- being an aprentice
- history of the palace ,wizard tower, the manuscriptorium...
- and loads of other things!

[Lee Noodle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the Septimus Heap series when I was younger. It was fun to flip through and revisit the world. I never did finish the series....maybe it's time to go back to the strange little Norse-Egyptian inspired fantasy land and nestle in again.

[Nighteye · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute and lovingly, as nice as the other heap books, with s lot of illustrations and nice guides of the chaste, a peak in diaries of several important persons and some biografies.

[Arson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a fun little add on to the books but it's not more than that. It has cool art in it though

[Abigail McKenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun bonus material! The Castle is such a fun story world, I love getting to know it better.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never quite understood why authors always release these kind of companion books snap in the middle of a series instead of waiting until all the regular books have been released. Because now you get what The Magykal Papers has too: An up-to-date history of the world and its characters up until Book 5, which was when this companion was published. Why not wait until Book 7 was out in the world?

The information that is presented is mostly general background knowledge (partly already known from the descriptions in the novels, partly new) on the world on a whole. Most of the other information, regarding the characters, pertains to the events described in Magyk and regards the way the Castle and its major inhabitants were changed in that time period (and the ten years before). The remaining information mostly regards character changes and developments in the other four books.

Mostly, it's just fun to have a full-colour book with all that information present in one go with some extra drawings of the places and characters we've grown to love. There are, however, some parts that are more interesting, such as Septimus's, Marcia's, Jenna's and even Lucy's notes, diary entries and such, in which you get a glimpse of their normal everyday lives in the Castle - which is something that is of course mostly lacking in the books themselves. Even so, I would have liked a more general image of their day-to-day behaviour too, instead of specific events as relayed in those notes.

But you can't have it all, of course. Despite the fact that there are more recent information and insights lacking, it does remain a fine book which you won't regret reading if you liked the main series.

7/10

[Teresa TL Bruce · Rating 3 out of 5]

My teenage daughter and I just finished this. It has been our most recent "bedtime story."

The Magykal Papers are a published "collection" of pamphlets, journal entries, telegram-like messages, to-do lists, and restaurant reviews from the world of Septimus Heap. Although the book has no plot, per se, it is filled with all sorts of "inside jokes" that readers of the series will find hilarious; unconverted future fans will simply scratch their heads, wondering, "What is that supposed to mean?"

This is an amusing addition to the series for those who already know and love (or hate, as the case may be) its characters.

[Ariel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great addition to the Septimus Heap series! I am a huge fan of the series, so as soon as I found out about this book I had to get my hands on it. It took me a few years, but once I found it (and CHEAP) I was thrilled! I finally got around to reading it now and I do not regret buying it. While it would make no sense to someone simply picking it up randomly, to those (myself included) who love the Septimus Heap books it is a great side book to read while waiting for the next book to come out. If you are a fellow fan, I highly recommend it!

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is super cute! The whole design of it (including the cover and dust jacket) is very well done. All of the artwork included in it is beautiful as well. I loved learning a few new things about the series and its characters. It was also nice to see more detailed pictures of some of the characters and locations in the books. The diaries were particularly interesting and entertaining. I definitely recommend this to anyone who is a fan of the Septimus Heap books! It's best to read this after the fourth book (Queste) though, as the info in the book becomes dated after that.

[Lori Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it. It made me want to read the other books all over again! Entrancing, engaging, and entertaining, it was just what I needed.

Highly recommended for those that have first read all the other Septimus Heap books.

Lori Anderson


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[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, quick read. It has been a while since I read the last Septimus Heap book,so this was a good reminder about the characters, background and plots of the previous novels. Not exactly cerebral, but one does not read Angie Sage for the philosophy. I think young readers would really appreciate this one.

[Noor ElBahrain · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best companion books I have read (other than the Discworld companion books <3 ). I read it in two nights and really enjoyed it. I am now considering re-reading all the books again before the release of Syren all because I remembered how I loved being engrossed in this world.

my review isn't that good but the book and the series are worth reading. read it :)

[Kirsti Call · Rating 3 out of 5]

I ended up skimming this. The book does give you extra details on the characters in the Septimus Heap series, but I kept thinking of the book from "The Series of Unfortunate Events", Lemony Snicket, the unathorized autobiography. I'm just not enough of a fan to feel the need to read these kinds of books. Even my kids weren't interested.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Perhaps I would have enjoyed this better if I had read it where it fit in in the series. As it was, I had to try to remember what had not happened at the point it was written. Some of it was fun, but it seemed to get a little tedious. It was more of a "pick up and read now and then" than a "sit and read through" kind of book to me.

[Emma Hedge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an eye-opener into some of the backstory of the Castle and it's inhabitants. I liked how it looked like you were actually reading from a manuscriptorium book! I liked how it gave detailed attention to the fonts so that no two were alike as with handwriting. Also, the font was still in bold at MAGYKAL words! A great look at the castle!

[Sella Malin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so cool! I love the world of Septimus Heap, it's so awesome and creative. The stuff in here is so funny; Angie Sage has a hilarious sense of humor. :) You know, I think I might like this series more than Harry Potter (gasp! lol). So yay! XD

[Dina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book is beautiful and sporadic fun but because it's so fragmented I couldn't read it more than 10 pages. Lacked continuity, no real purpose to what it was all about. Someone else may enjoy its format and style.

[LauraW · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a sucker for books with maps and floor plans. This is a fun addition to the Septimus Heap books, which I have enjoyed. They don't seem like outstanding literature to me, but they are enjoyable, interesting, and very readable. And I like the characters.

[Jasmin · Rating 4 out of 5]

it's not really a book. More like a book on the extra things the author decided not to include. Puts a different perspective on things though. I also admire the pictures the illustrator drew. Very cool.

[Miranda Starmz · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice little guidebook that complements the Septimus Heap series, it is most definitely advised to read this only after you've read the first four books. Filled with fun, quirky facts, it's a book you'd probably choose to flip through quickly, not something to toil over during a rainy day.

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good and really funny, just like every other Angie Sage book i've ever read! Definitely a must-read for anyone into Septimus Heap, although it'll be a bit difficult to understand, plus some spoilers if you haven't read the other books in the series

[Shenek · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and light encyclopedia of the Septimus Heap books. It would have been more fun to read it back when I was reading the rest of the series.