Publisher Affirm Press, Simon and Schuster Australia
Review by Liz Filleul
First up: The Lost Book of Magic by Amelia Mellor isn’t a children’s mystery or crime novel in the vein of Charlie Archbold’s Sugar Cane Kids or Nikki Greenberg’s ‘Detective’s Guide’ books. It’s primarily a fantasy, but in addition to magic, it contains adventures, riddles and mysteries that are often beloved by young (and older!) crime readers.
It is also firmly set in Melbourne. It might be 1895 Melbourne, but so many landmarks are still in place today: the zoo, the observatory, Lonsdale Street, Little Bourke Street… It’s always a joy to read a good book that takes place in a familiar setting.
The Lost Book of Magic is the third instalment in Amelia Mellor’s ‘Grandest Bookshop’ trilogy, but can easily be read as a standalone. The action is centred on the real-life Cole’s Book Arcade, which was the largest bookshop in the world at the time this novel was set.
Depression has come to Melbourne, and Edward Cole has decided to close down the Book Arcade and relocate to Sydney. When a ghostly visitor offers Cole’s daughter Pearl the chance of magic that could thwart those plans, she grasps it. But the visitor has trickery in mind, leaving Pearl’s brother Vally needing to seek the help of a sinister magician to save Pearl.
The combination of history, magic and adventure makes for a compelling read. The sequence in the zoo is particularly memorable for its mixture of danger, fun and magic. And while the adventure is at the forefront of the story, it’s not lost on the reader that the uncertain, dark times of 1895 in many ways mirror our own. Edward Cole’s words to Vally and Pearl about how small things can make a difference – ‘Maybe you can’t give every struggling family a happy life. But the arcade can give them a happy afternoon’, ‘Maybe you can’t open the minds of hateful people, but … you can open the minds of people who are willing to learn’ – made me, like Vally, feel a little better about how we can have a positive impact on the world we now navigate. It’s a message that will surely help all the young readers who pick up this book, too.
Publishers Blurb
It’s 1895, Melbourne is in crisis, and Pearl and Vally Cole’s father has suggested the unthinkable: it might be time to close the grandest bookshop in the world.
When a ghostly visitor offers Pearl magic that could save her home, she seizes her chance. But her new friend is not what he seems, and the unstoppable magic in the palm of her hand comes at a terrible cost.
Vally can see just one way to save Pearl before she is lost forever. He must call upon the sinister magician who nearly destroyed the Cole family two years ago. But the Obscurosmith only performs the impossible for a price …
Reunite with old friends, solve fiendish puzzles, and find five lost treasures from across the globe in this sweeping adventure that concludes the story of The Grandest Bookshop in the World.