"The Box of Delights" by John Masefield follows the Christmas adventures of Kay Harker as he encounters mysterious characters, magical boxes, time travel, and a battle between good and evil. Set in a snowy town preparing for its 1,000th anniversary celebration, Kay finds himself on a mission to rescue kidnapped clergymen and prevent the disruption of the Christmas service. The story combines fantasy, adventure, danger, and mystery, capturing the essence of a child's sense of wonder and play in a magical and surreal world.
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From The Publisher:
Strange things begin to happen the minute young Kay Harker boards the train to go home for Christmas and finds himself under observation by two very shifty-looking characters. Arriving at his destination, the boy is immediately accosted by a bright-eyed old man with a mysterious message: "The wolves are running." Soon danger is everywhere, as a gang of criminals headed by the notorious wizard Abner Brown and his witch wife Sylvia Daisy Pouncer gets to work. What does Abner Brown want? The magic box that the old man has entrusted to Kay, which allows him to travel freely not only in space but in time, too. The gang will stop at nothing to carry out their plan, even kidnapping Kay's friend, the tough little Maria Jones, and threatening to cancel Christmas celebrations altogether. But with the help of his allies, including an intrepid mouse, a squadron of Roman soldiers, the legendary Herne the Hunter, and the inventor of the Box of Delights himself, Kay just may be able rescue his friend, foil Abner Brown's plot, and save Christmas, too.
At once a thriller, a romp, and a spellbinding fantasy, The Box of Delights is a great English children's book and a perfect Christmas treat.
What can you read after
The Box of Delights?
About the Author:
John Masefield was a novelist, journalist and poet. He won the Edmond de Polignac prize in 1912, and was appointed Poet Laureate in 1930 - a role he performed for the next 37 years. Masefield wrote 21 novels, including two children's books featuring Kay Harker, The Midnight Folk (1927) and The Box of Delights (1935). He died in 1967, and his ashes were interred in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey.
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