The Wish (novel)

For other uses, see The Wish (disambiguation).
The Wish
Author Gail Carson Levine
Cover artist Patrick Faricy
Country United States
Language English
Genre Fantasy
Publisher HarperCollins
Publication date
 2000
Media type Print (Hardcover, Paperback)
Pages 208
Awards

2001 IRA/CBC Children's Choice
2002 IRA Young Adult's Choice

NYT Extended Children's Bestseller list
ISBN 0064473619

The Wish is a 2000 children's novel by Gail Carson Levine, the Newbery Honor winning author of Ella Enchanted. The novel tells the story of Wilma, who wishes to be the most popular girl at her school, Claverford, forgetting that she will graduate in three weeks and move to a new school.[1]

Plot synopsis

Eighth-grader Wilma Sturtz is friendless. Her closest childhood friends have moved away, and her efforts to make new ones have failed. Wilma goes from being a nobody to being truly unpopular when a very personal essay written for language arts class is read aloud to the class by her teacher. However, Wilma's fortunes change when she offers an old lady her seat on the subway. The mysterious woman offers to grant Wilma one wish, exactly as Wilma wishes it. Flustered, Wilma wishes to be the most popular kid at Claverford, her private middle school.

To Wilma's surprise, the wish is granted. Boys fall all over themselves to pay attention to her; girls include her in their circles; she even receives poetry from a secret admirer. She also receives 40 dates to Grad Night. Her newfound popularity brings her new friends — the popular Ardis, BeeBee, and Nina, but also an unwanted "friend", razor-mouth Suzanne, a very nasty girl at school. However, she also finds that her wish is not perfect; she has garnered the attention of Jared, an unpopular boy with whom she would rather not become friends. Worst of all, she soon discovers that her wish only works on students at Claverford when Stephanie, a student not at Claverford, treats her with indifference — and in a month she and her new friends will graduate.

Even as she comes to value the sincerity of a friendship with unpopular Daphne and a budding romance with once-scorned Jared, Wilma tries desperately to cling to the happiness she has found in her brief popularity and keep the wonderful friends she has finally found. Wilma finds the importance of true friendship and that a person must be very careful of what they wish for, even if they think it is the right thing.

Background

Gail Carson Levine wanted to get as much material for this book as possible, as she had skipped eighth grade herself. To make up for missing personal experiences, she interviewed a group of eighth graders about school, friends, and relationships.[2]

Reception

The Wish was a 2001 International Reading Association (IRA)/Children's Book Council (CBC) Children's Choice[3] and a 2002 IRA Young Adult's Choice.[4] The Wish also appeared on the NYT Extended Children's Bestseller list.[5]

Publishers Weekly said of The Wish in a May 2000 review, "Levine turns from fairy godmothers in the Brothers Grimm era to modern-day magic in this provocative meditation on what it means to be popular."[6]

A USA Today review also praised the book saying, "Levine, the author of Newbery Honor Book Ella Enchanted, writes with great sympathy and humor about the elusive nature of popularity. And middle school readers from every spot in the pecking order will sympathize with Wilma's efforts to be comfortable in her own skin."[7]

References

  1. ↑ Levine, Gail Carson (2000). The Wish. New York, NY: HarperCollins. ISBN 0064473619.
  2. ↑ Levine, Gail Carson. "The Wish: Gail Said". Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  3. ↑ The International Reading Association; The Children’s Book Council (October 2001). "Children's Choices for 2001" (PDF). The Reading Teacher. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  4. ↑ International Reading Association (November 2002). "2002 Young Adults' Choices" (PDF). Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  5. ↑ Levine, Gail Carson. "The Wish: Kudos". Gail Carson Levine Official Website. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  6. ↑ "The Wish". Publishers Weekly. 1 May 2000. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  7. ↑ "Critical Praise for The Wish". HarperCollins. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
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