THE MAGIC MEADOW

by Alexander Key ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 18, 1975

Key breaks several rules of children's fantasy in this story of a paralyzed boy who teleports himself and five fellow patients from their beds in a ward for ""hopeless"" children to a lovely meadow drenched in sunshine and flowers. First, Brick returns from his original solo visit with a real dandelion which proves unequivocally that he was in fact there; and second, as the incapacitated children need care, they bring along a passenger from the grown-up world--namely, the sympathetic night-shift Nurse Jackson who never doubts Brick's incredible story after she sees the dandelion. Once there, the children are miraculously healed, though it takes a while to get their strength back and meanwhile there are problems with dwindling food supplies, inclement weather and a huge, looming spotted dog. Through it all Nurse Jackson marvels at the place's similarity to her native Alabama, though misty-headed Princess believes they are on another planet; and Brick finally figures out that they're in an Alabama of the future, populated by a highly developed race that practices telepathy and sings in the sky. Both the characterization and the sci-fi ideas can only be described as primitive, though Nurse Jackson and her cargo of medicine and blankets provide a smattering of wish-fulfilling horniness.

Pub Date: March 18, 1975

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 120

Publisher: Westminster

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1975

Categories: FICTION