The Bottle Imp of Bright House by Tom Llewellyn

The Bottle Imp of Bright House

by Tom Llewellyn

A delightfully dark middle-grade novel reminiscent of the Newbery-winning classic, The Westing Game.

Think of a wish. Go big with it. A winning lottery ticket. Eternal happiness. School vacation for a year. Now, answer this question: If you know this wish will come true, would you still make it if you knew someone else would somehow have to pay for it?

That's the catch thirteen-year-old Gabe Silver faces when a mysterious millionaire sells him a bottle containing a wish-granting imp. Any time Gabe makes a wish, someone else, somewhere, is going to lose something--maybe something big. That means each of Gabe's wishes should be an ethical dilemma--but as he scores a Ferrari, a hot tub, and all the pizza and sub sandwiches a kid could want, he's certain a guilty conscience is worth it...isn't it?

This thought-provoking book, inspired by a Robert Louis Stevenson novella, is pithy, dark, and very, very funny. It has an endearing, wacked-out cast of characters brought to life by illustrator Gris Grimly, whose cover art will be embossed to highlight the depth and detail of the art.

Reviewed by alisoninbookland on

3 of 5 stars

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Cute MG story about the dangers of getting anything you want. I found the bottle imp to be an interesting twist to familiar storyline.

Great for fans of Roald Dahl.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 25 October, 2018: Finished reading
  • 25 October, 2018: Reviewed