Athena & the Magic Land by Joan Holub, Suzanne Williams

Athena & the Magic Land (QUIX)

by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams

Little Athena finds herself on a Wizard of Oz inspired adventure in this first Little Goddess Girls story—part of the Aladdin QUIX line!

After a strange and sparkly storm carries her away from home, Athena finds herself in a land filled with magic, talking animals, and incredible objects with magical powers—the land of Mount Olympus! When Athena arrives, she’s greeted by the talking Owlies and is paired with very special magical sandals—sandals with powers that Medusa, a green, snake-haired girl, wants for herself!

A glowing goddess (of hearth and home) named Hestia appears and warns Athena that if Medusa gets her snakes on those sandals, she’ll surely use its powers to make trouble for Mount Olympus! But Athena has more important things on her mind—like going back home! Determined to find her way back, Athena heads off on an adventure through the magical landscape of Mount Olympus to try and elude Medusa—and find her way back to the mortal world once and for all with the help of the great and powerful Zeus!

Reviewed by Nicole Lynn on

3 of 5 stars

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This was a cute, quick story for early chapter book readers. The sentences were easy to read and short. The characters were easy to remember & the storyline easy to follow. While it was a little weird to be basically reading a shortened version of The Wizard of Oz with Greek mythology thrown in there, I think younger readers will enjoy the quick adventure. The ending leaves a cliff hanger that will spur readers on to the next book in the series to find out what happens. Adult readers will probably surmise the storyline if they’ve ever read or seen a Wizard of Oz. Overall though, a sweet and slightly adventurous story for new chapter book readers.
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Oh there’s also a vocabulary glossary in the back, a list of characters in the front with quick bios and some discussion questions at the end as well. I appreciated having these aspects in the book & think they will add value to younger readers.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 30 September, 2019: Finished reading
  • 30 September, 2019: Reviewed