Ordinary Magic

by Caitlen Rubino-Bradway

Overview

In Abby's world, magic isn't anything special: it's a part of everyday life. So when Abby is discovered to have zero magical abilities, she's branded an Ord-ordinary, bad luck, and quite possibly a danger to society.

The outlook for an ord isn't bright. Many are cast out by their families, while others are sold to treasure hunters (ords are impervious to spells and enchantments) Luckily for Abby, her family enrolls her in a special school for kids who must learn how to get around in the world without magic. But with kidnappers and carnivorous goblins lurking around every corner, Abby's biggest problem may not be what she's going to do with her life - it's whether she's going to survive the school year.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781599908342
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	05/08/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	896,744
Lexile:	850L (what's this?)
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Caitlen Rubino-Bradway is best know for co-writing the adult novel Lady Vernon and Her Daughter with her mother. This is her first book for younger readers.
CAITLEN RUBINO-BRADWAY is also the author of the adult novel Lady Vernon and Her Daughter, which she wrote with her mother. This is her first book for younger readers.

Editorial Reviews

Having grown up in a world in which magic is used for everything—from whipping up breakfast to traveling (via flying carpet)—12-year-old Abby is distraught after she is declared an “ord,” entirely devoid of magic. Most families either cast out ord children or sell them to conniving adventurers, but, in an inversion of the magical boarding school trope, Abby is enrolled in Rothermere, a school where ords learn how to survive without magic. There, Abby meets friends and finds that, despite widespread prejudice against them, there are advantages to being an ord (“Ords can’t do magic,” explains an instructor. “And magic can’t really do ords either”). The first middle-grade novel from Rubino-Bradway (co-author of Lady Vernon and Her Daughter, for adults) takes its time getting underway; when, in the second half, treasure hunters kidnap Abby and other students, the plot picks up. On the whole, it’s a fairly mild adventure with dashes of humor (characters include Barbarian Mike and King Steve); Abby, as a truly “normal” heroine, is easy to identify with. Unfinished business suggests a sequel is in store. Ages 8–12. Agent: Lauren Galit, LKG Agency. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Harry Potter in reverse. In a magical world, a young girl is judged to be merely ordinary, changing the course of her life forever. When 12-year-old Abby Hale passes through the archway of the "Barrier of Fortitude" on the day of her Judging, nothing happens. Even when she repeats the effort over and over again: nada. Mr. Graidy, the ancient head of the Guild painfully concludes: "She has nothing. She is nothing. She's an ord." In the magical universe where Abby resides, "ords" are outcasts. Many are rejected by their families, friends and schools; some are either sold to or kidnapped by exploitative treasure hunters. But Abby is spared the worst since her gifted older sister is in service to the Department of Education and the sympathetic King Stephen. In her debut for children, Rubino-Bradway tells Abby's tale in a first-person narration characterized by upbeat energy and action, treating readers to a jaunt filled with caring schoolmates, teachers, siblings and parents, as well as heartless enemies. While the author has crafted an allegory that successfully lampoons mindless prejudice and coupled it with a pitch to make do with one's own limitations, the story eventually deteriorates into a jumble of repetitive escapades with characters who adjust to their circumstances but don't evolve. Promising, but not quite there yet. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews