Jessie's helped the magical people of the Realm to escape danger twice now -- she's a real hero to her friends there. But now her own world is in danger. Forest fires threaten her beloved home, Blue Moon. And only the magic of the realm can help her...
Emily Rodda (real name Jennifer Rowe) was born in Sydney, Australia and graduated from the University of Sydney in 1973 with an MA (Hons) in English Literature. Moving into a publishing career, first as a book editor, and finally as a publisher at Angus & Robertson, Rodda's first book was published in 1984.
I will say that this one out of the series books I've read so far was the hardest to read. This is because the story-line mainly revolves around forest fires and after the horrific devastations in both Australia and California and knowing people caught up in those events, I worried whether the time to carry on was right. I did finish The Third Wish in the end and as stated before in the reviews for books one and two, the series overall is very good. Jessie and her magical realm friends must save their world from the horrors of fires that threaten the existence of wildlife and people both in the real world and in the realm. Please be cautious if you do decide to pick this one up.
A short, sweet, feel-good type story from Emily Rodda. Very female centred book and based on the presumed interests of little girls (fairies, mermaids, conflict with parents and strong bonds with grandparents). I love that her Grandmother, Jessica is such an important part of Jessie's adventures- having an elderly woman portrayed so positively is one of the strengths.
This book is also very safe for children to read in that the suspense is minimal, there is not anything overly scary and the movement through anything remotely frightening is both fast and positive. There are wishes- but they are used well for matters of life and death Jessie's material reward as in the previous book is just a little charm (which is the idea behind the series I believe).
I have a slight problem with the normalisation of a white, privileged, middle-class childhood as universal: "How strange. I guess children and parents are the same no matter where they live." (p56). While this irritated me, it could be interpreted by children in a positive way (not to make needless distinctions between different people) and I am sure is well meant. Besides it it woven necessarily into the plot. I also had miner issued with the "too good to be true" unselfish and serving femininity of Patrice but hopefully over the series that is better deconstructed.
I predicted where the plot was heading but it was a sweet and easy to read book that would be just right for a beginning reader who is getting her confidence up for longer books (like Deltora perhaps). I would get this for a little girl, it avoids most of the pitfalls of little-girl chapter books and is something fresher.
I've been wishing my daughter wouldn't read these fluff fairy books, but I was basing my entire opinion of the series on two things: the pictures on the covers, and the Disney fairy books. (I know, I know. But sometimes you CAN judge a book by its cover.)
Then I read this book, because my 8-year-old daughter said it was THE BEST in the series (she loves mermaids even more than she loves fairies). And it was fun! Unlike the Disney fairy books, Emily Rodda actually puts thought into her storyline, and quality into her writing. Quality for a book written for 9-year-olds. Keep that in mind.
So, my daughter can read this series. In fact, I could even be convinced to read beyond my "1 Book in the Series" contractual obligation.
I think this one has been my favourite in the series so far. I caught onto the main plot twist before it happened but it was still good, and the secondary twist about how Jessie gets home was pretty clever.
Much better than book 2. The author quickly establishes a legitimate problem and a plan to solve it in this one. The story keeps a good pace and finishes with a mystery story-esque twist. Light magic building with the introduction of “wish stones”, magic fish, and mermaids. Overall, entertaining enough and my daughter loved it.
This is another in the very good Fairy Realm series. In this story Jessie and her grandmother are in danger; there are massive wildfires all over the place, and it's possible that Blue Moon could be destroyed if the fires get there.
Jessie decides to go to the Fairy Realm for help. It turns out she's going to have to face Lorca, a person with an island of her own and someone who captures living things and does not let them go. Although Jessie is warned of the danger, she decides to go there, searching for a wish-stone so she can cause it to rain at home and stop the fires.
It turns out Lorca isn't quite the person she expected, and things work out in a wonderful fashion. Very good book.
Where the other books fell short, this one rang true to the Emily Rodda books I'm used to. Yes, it was very simple, but it was cleverer than the first two. The whole twist with Lorca and the Magic Fish were very well-thought out. For a book that's meant for probably fourth-graders, the Magic Fish twist even stumped me longer than it should have. Which is something I always love about Rodda books. This makes me almost wish I had the rest of the series. If I happen to run into them...
113 pages. Book #3 of the series. Great story. Lots of description. Plot keeps moving. Lots of emotion and main character has to work out her own solution even with all the help received from those around her. Highly recommended for ES. Gr. 2-4.
The third book in the fairy realm series, the second I have read, and the young hero saves the day again, in what was almost book one redux - an way it will be loved by the readers that matter and is still an entertaining little yarn. Rodda knows what she is doing. Fairy Realm #2 Emily Rodda #34
The Fairy Realm series are wholesome lighthearted reads featuring a secret fairy realm found through a doorway at the edge of the garden. There's magic and mythical creatures and miniature horses that talk (because what else would you find in a secret fairy realm? duh.) It's reminiscent of Shirley Barber's gorgeous picture books albeit with less impressive artwork (Shirley Barber is incredibly talented). It's a good series for tween girls. I loved this series as a kid, they were imaginative and magical and I loved every minute. I'm pretty sure this series is what started my love of charm bracelets too.
The Third Wish This one was interesting, Rosemary (Jessie's mum) tries to protect Jessie from the knowledge that the bushfires are close to Blue Moon. She doesn't lie to her - Jessie is aware of the fires - but she doesn't inform her of the danger either and Jessie doesn't seem to recognise the stress and worry her mother is feeling. I found it an interesting direction to take the story in. I liked that Jessica explained the situation to Jessie and reminded her how brave and resilient she can be when given the chance. I think sometimes we don't give kids enough credit.
Upon realising the danger, Jessie asks her Granny if there's anything they can do - afterall - their garden has a secret garden entrance to a hidden magical realm - surely they can fix things with magic? And so begins a trip to the Under-Sea of the Realm to find a wish-stone. Or a magic fish.
Of course, it doesn't go as planned when Jessie finds that a being named Lorca has taken over the Under-Sea imprisoning fish and one poor mermaid, Coral, ever since Queen Jessica first left the Realm. I enjoyed getting to see other aspects of the Realm. I liked Ripple and the Magic Fish and I liked the moral lessons about the dangers of wishes and the risks the Magic Fish faced that were imparted. Jessie manages to sort out the Under-Sea, return to Blue Moon and put out the fires and later receives a golden fish for her charm bracelet. Very enjoyable. 5 stars.
As a raging forest fire makes its way towards Blue Moon, Jessie learns that there are wish stones in the Fairy Realm that may be the only way to protect her home - but it will mean diving into the Under Sea, where the mermaid folk fear a mysterious being named Lorca who captures any near her island! Rodda and Vitale will keep fans engaged in another wonderful adventure, prettily scenic and simply yet effectively touching.
revisited as an adult: loved this series as a kid, and I think it holds up pretty well. not in the target demographic anymore, but I enjoy reading it. I think Jessie's common sense and practicality saving the day is a good lesson!
Forest fires are coming to blue moon so Jessie came to the realm to find a wish stone. But the realm creatures are not allowed to go under the sea because that is the rules. A mirmade guided her to the under water castle were Lorca lived. She had gathered all the wish stones. Lorca the mirmade used to be Coral Ripple the mirmades older sister. The magic fish made Jessie's wish come true and the wish was that their would be rain so the fires would go out.
This twist on the "Little Mermaid" has a surprise ending.......
One thing though: I don't understand why Granny is so happy with her lot in life, but Lorca is so unhappy with hers. The book doesn't explain this. (Could it really be that a good man is all it takes for a happy life???? Not something we want to teach our daughters...)
In this book, a girl named Jessie goes to the Fairy Realm to find a wish-stone to put out the fires in the mountains. Each wish-stone can only grant three wishes. Wish-stones wash up on the bay of the Under-Sea in the Fairy Realm. I like this book because Jessie puts out the fire in the mountains. By: Felicity
This series was a great introduction into the love of reading for my girls. My daughter hated reading and was hooked on the first book. I decided to read it to make sure it was a "good" book and loved the character development and plot. Another good book you might like if you like this one is Into the Land of the Unicorns. That series is excellent for adult and children.
Cute story that my niece really loved. She loved the change in scenery for the book. The story was still in the realm, but it was set in Under-Sea which was fun to have some of the same loved characters, but to meet some new ones.
Again, this is a story for older children to tween age girls. It has a very good flow and is a very quick read.
This Book is all about this girl jesse and one day she was very hot in the house and so she had to tell her mother that she was hot and so her mother had to take her to a pool like a swimming pool and she had went to the pool and when jesse got to the pool like inside the pool she was very happy and she was feeling a little cooler and a lot better.