Steve Cole & Linda Chapman: 'Genie Us!'

Four stepchildren find a “How To Become A Genie” handbook and decide to wish their problems away in this extended chapter book targeted at +8s. On the guidance of a magic bookworm, the kids are soon tackling the six stages while learning about growing up. Acclimating to their new life together in a boring small town isn’t easy, but, predictably, magic doesn’t make it any easier. Almost immediately things go wrong. The kids have to survive their scrapes, hide their new powers from their over-worked parents, and also figure out the identity of the dark, inhuman couple chasing them.

Some twists are fun and surprising, such as the first task to find a genie lamp. Co-author Steve Cole, known for his fun Cows In Action series, is no stranger to wackiness. The boys use a modern adaptation of the traditional metal lamp: a quacking, yellow plastic duck torch. Plastic works a little differently than the centuries-old handbook authors might have intended. Luckily, the girls find a real metal lamp in a junk shop, and working together, they free their trapped stepbrothers.

After passing each test, the handbook pronounces why they’ve passed and reiterates what they’ve learned. At times, the morals are laid on thick enough to be cut with a cheese knife and spread on crackers. However, the kids - 14-year-old Jess, 13-year-old Michael, 9-year-old Jason, and 8-year-old Milly - are inventive, genuinely caring, and likeable. It’s not The Chronicles Of Narnia, but it’s a pleasant read nonetheless. And who wouldn’t like to be genies and use real magic? Even if it does draw down the ire of the secret Genie Counsel...

Published on 6th March 2008 by Red Fox.

Written by W. L. Clark.