The Art of Wishing

When eighteen-year-old Margo learns she lost the lead in her high school musical to a sophomore because of a modern-day genie, she falls in love with Oliver, the genie, while deciding what her own wishes should be and trying to rescue him from an old foe.

• ISBN13: 9780803738270
• Publish Date: 21 March 2013
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Out of Print: 24 June 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Dial Books for Young Readers,US
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[jnikkir]

Let me start off by saying, I had ridiculously high expectations for The Art of Wishing. I fell in love with it after just hearing the title, seeing the cover (so cute!), and reading the blurb - something about it made me absolutely sure that I would love it. Probably the fact that it has to do with genies, mixed with the sort of quirky/cute contemporary feel of the title and cover. (Plus I just haven't read enough books about genies/djinn even though I find them really interesting). That combo had me hooked, and I was going to be SUPER disappointed if the book didn't live up to my very high expectations.

Oh, but it did. It really, really did.

The Art of Wishing was everything I wanted it to be. It was light, without being overly silly. It was adorable, without being annoying. It was funny, completely endearing, and it had just enough excitement to keep things interesting. But overall, what I loved about it was that it was a lot more character-driven than I was expecting. And the characters are what made this one so memorable for me.

So first we have Margo, who is a senior in high school, and an example of exactly the kind of female protagonist I enjoy in YA. She is neither a popular girl, nor a total outcast - she's just a normal teenager. She doesn't have a huge group of friends and is happy with a few close ones. She's got a no-nonsense attitude, and is smart and self-reliant. No helpless heroines here.

Then we have Oliver, who is a sophomore at Margo's school, and also (possibly more notably) a genie. ;) Oliver is... oh goodness. Oliver is fantastic and super charming. He actually wasn't what I was expecting him to be, as a genie, which just made the book even better. He adores what he does - he loves granting people's wishes, making them happy, and being the one to make their dreams come true. He takes pride and joy in his magic, and it's SO endearing.

For the first half-ish of the book, the main plot focuses on Margo finding Oliver's ring (no lamps for this genie), and Margo having to decide what to do with her wishes. Oliver keeps dropping hints that he's being chased and doesn't have much time to waste waiting for Margo to make her wishes, but he stays anyway. Like I said, he takes a lot of pride in what he does, and he wants to give Margo her three wishes even though he might be killed - and possibly because of that.

I don't want to give anything away, but another thing I really enjoyed was how Ribar dealt with/explained Oliver's age and attitude. He may be an old(ish) genie, but he is also a 16-year-old boy, and I believed it. Margo's and Oliver's relationship was also super cute. It might technically be considered a little bit instalove-ish; but it didn't feel like it was. It mostly felt genuine and sweet and real. I love their characters as individuals, but I also adore them together.

Thanks to the overall charm and unexpected depth to this book, I'm giving it 5-stars, easy. It's going to stick with me for a long time, and is one of my absolute favorites so far this year.

(I'm already freaking out over the year-long wait for The Fourth Wish. Can it please just be 2014 already??)
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{ Find this and other reviews at my blog, There were books involved... }

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

Source: ARC

Review:

[This review contains slight spoilers. It discusses some of the questions Margo raises about her relationship with Oliver.]

The Art of Wishing is a fun story that explores the age-old questions of: What would you do if you had a genie? What would you ask for? The answers here, of course, are not entirely straightforward, which is what makes following Margo’s struggle with them so entertaining. She goes a little deeper than most people world, first questioning genies’ attitudes towards granting wishes. Is it slavery or something they enjoy? Then she has the problem of deciding what to ask for. Ribar weaves a delicate system of “genie rules” to background her story, and discovering them along with Margo keeps reading interesting.

The writing itself is also engaging. Margo has a fantastically realistic voice, as well as a realistic outlook on life. Through Margo, Ribar manages to poke a bit of fun at the paranormal romance genre in which she has set her debut, as well as fictional romances in general. Are you skeptical that Margo can love a boy she met a week ago? Well, so is Margo.

Although I do find most of Margo’s comments on these subjects both clever and amusing, I hold some reservations. Authors of paranormal romance are noticing some of what many readers see as the major issues of the genre. One, for example, being the huge age difference between the teen girl protagonist and her supernatural love interest. Why would he of so much life experience be interested in her? Margo asks this, too. But—there is not much of an answer. For me, the fact that authors are beginning to raise these issues, imply it is true they are issues, and laugh at them a bit, is not enough. There is a difference between mentioning a problem, saying, “Yeah, you are freakishly older than I am. How weird!” and managing to write a plot or explanation that actually fixes the problem. The Art of Wishing is certainly not alone in this technique, but I would love to see YA authors strive further and actually work some issues out.

Romantic issues aside, the plot is a lot of fun. It is combination fantasy, action, romance, and serious teen issues. Tense moments are followed by touching ones, which are followed by funny ones. I laughed out loud more than once while reading this book. I was also seriously surprised and horrified by some of the plot twists. No obvious foreshadowing or cookie cutter plot here!

Overall, The Art of Wishing is a cute and fun read that takes itself just seriously enough. It is entertaining, but it has a bit of substance to it, as well. A great debut from someone who obviously knows YA writing.