The 12th Candle
Author(s): Kim Tomsic
Middle school meets magic in this hilarious and heartfelt novel about a girl whose life flips when she wishes on an enchanted candle—perfect for fans of Sarah Mlynowski and Wendy Mass.
Sage Sassafras’s life is cursed! No, really. Since birth, Sage has been plagued by the Contrarium Curse that’s set her at odds with classmate Priscilla Petty.
Every time something goes right for Priscilla, it goes terribly, horribly wrong for Sage. And things always go well for Priscilla.
Sage blames the curse for all her middle school misery—from losing a friend to failing gym to gaining a reputation as the girl whose daddy’s in trouble. So when Sage is given a magical candle on her twelfth birthday, she seizes the chance to turn her luck around—with a wish to reverse the curse.
But when the consequences of her wish take a terrible turn, Sage has to team up with her worst enemy—before she’s doomed to a life of opposites forever.
Review(s):
"Tomsic demonstrates that wishes have a power of their own, no matter the good intentions behind them. [Sage has a] colorful group of friends whose engaging dialogue and ever-evolving relationships capture the essence of middle-school interaction."
“A thoughtful look at curse versus choice and an encouragement to youngsters to make their own paths.”
Sage is a believable feisty twelve-year-old, who has been trying to outrun her family’s tarnished reputation for as long as she can remember, and her vulnerability to the preening Priscilla is keenly relatable.
PRAISE FOR The 11:11 Wish: “Debut author Tomsic infuses Megan’s first-person narrative with lots of personality and a distinctive voice, and secondary characters are all complex and multidimensional. Light fantasy firmly grounded in the realities of middle-school emotions.”
“Readers will empathize with [Megan’s] tenuous position and her tenacity despite the hilarious situations she gets herself into. A fine, funny fix.”
“Tomsic puts a pawsitively magical twist on middle school mayhem. Whimsical and wacky, The 11:11 Wish is a romp of a read sure to please young teens and tweens.”
“Full of unexpected twists and turns, this sweet, funny book is pure magic.”
"The book briefly touches on the seriousness of bullying and having a parent in prison, but overall it treats its subject matter with a light hand, and there’s plenty of appeal in the notion of magic and wish fulfillment. Readers will contentedly follow Sage to the neatly wrapped happy ending."
ISBN: 9780062654984