If You Liked Harry Potter

Alexander, Lloyd. Book of Three. (J Alexander)
Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper to a famous sow, sets out on a hazardous mission to save Prydain from the forces of evil. Sequels: The Black Cauldron, The Castle of Llyr, Taran Wanderer, and The High King.

Barron, The Lost Years of Merlin. (J Barron)
A young boy who has no identity, or memory of his past washes ashore on the coast of Wales and finds his true name after a series of fantastic adventures. Sequels: The Seven Songs of Merlin, The Fires of Merlin, The Mirror of Merlin, and The Wings of Merlin.

Cooper, Susan. Over Sea, Under Stone. (J Cooper)
Three children on a holiday in Cornwall find an ancient manuscript which sends them on a dangerous quest for a grail that would reveal the true story of King Arthur. Sequels: The Dark is Rising, Greenwitch, The Grey King, and Silver on the Tree.

Coville, Bruce. Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher. (J Coville)
When Jeremy Thatcher follows the strange instructions given to him by the weird old man who runs the Elives' Magic Shop, he finds himself raising a tiny mischief-loving dragon. But as Jeremy soon learns, even a tiny dragon can mean big trouble -- and it isn't going to stay tiny for long!

Duane, Diane. So You Want to Be a Wizard. (J Duane)
Thirteen-year-old Nita, tormented by a gang of bullies because she won't fight back, finds the help she needs in a library book on wizardry which guides her into another dimension.

Eager, Edward. Half Magic. (J Eager)
Faced with a dull summer in the city, Jane, Mark, Katharine, and Martha suddenly find themselves involved in a series of extraordinary adventures after Jane discovers an ordinary-looking coin that seems to grant wishes. Sequels: Knight's Castle, Magic by the Lake, The Time Garden, Magic or Not?, The Well-Wishers, and Seven-Day Magic.

Funk, Cornelia. Inkheart. (J Funk)
Twelve-year-old Meggie learns that her father Mo, a bookbinder, can "read" fictional characters to life when an evil ruler named Capricorn, freed from the novel "Inkheart years earlier, tries to force Mo to release an immortal monster from the story. Sequel: Inkspell.

Ibbotson, Eva. Secret of Platform 13. (J Ibbotson)
Odge Gribble, a young hag, joins an old wizard, and a giant ogre on a journey from their magical island kingdom to London. They travel through a tunnel which opens every nine years for nine days, to try and rescue the young prince who had been stolen as an infant nine years before.

Johnson, Jane. The Secret Country. (J Johnson)
Having learned from a talking cat that he and his sisters are the half-elfin royalty of a parallel world called Eidolon, twelve-year old Ben Arnold attempts to stop his evil uncle from smuggling magical creatures between the two worlds.

L’Engle, Madeline. Wrinkle in Time. (J L’Engle)
Meg Murry and her friends become involved with unearthly strangers and a search for Meg's father, who has disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government. Sequels: A Wind in the Door, A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Many Waters, and An Acceptable Time.

Levine, Gail Carson. Ella Enchanted. (J Levine)
In this novel based on the story of Cinderella, Ella travels through lands inhabited by ogres, elves, and fairies while struggling against the childhood curse that forces her to obey any order she is given.

Lewis, C.S. The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. (J Lewis)
Four English schoolchildren find their way through the back of a wardrobe into the magic land of Narnia where they assist Aslan, the golden lion, to triumph over the White Witch, who has cursed the land with eternal winter. Sequels: Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair, The Horse and His Boy, The Magician's Nephew, and The Last Battle.

McKinley, Robin. The Hero and the Crown. (J McKinley)
Aerin, with the guidance of the wizard Luthe and the help of the blue sword, wins the birthright due her as the daughter of the Damarian king and a witchwoman of the mysterious, demon-haunted North.

Moloney, James. Book of Lies. (J Moloney)
On the night he was brought to an orphanage, Marcel's memories were taken by a sorceror and replaced with new ones by his Book of Lies, but Bea, a girl with the ability to make herself invisible, was watching and is determined to help him discover his true identity.

Nesbit, E. The Enchanted Castle. (J Nesbit)
Four English children find a wonderful world of magic through an enchanted wishing ring.

Nimmo, Jenny. Midnight for Charlie Bone. (J Nimmo)
Charlie Bone's life with his widowed mother and two grandmothers undergoes a dramatic change when he discovers that he can hear people in photographs talking. Sequels: Charlie Bone and the Time Twister, Charlie Bone and the Invisible Boy, Charlie Bone and the Castle of Mirrors, and Charlie Bone and the Hidden King.

Nix, Garth. Mister Monday. (J Nix)
Arthur Penhaligon is supposed to die at a young age, but is saved by a key which causes bizarre creatures to come from another realm. A man named Mister Monday will stop at nothing to get the key back. Sequils: Grim Tuesday, Drowned Wednesday, Sir Thursday, and Lady Friday.

Norton, Mary. Bednob and Broomstick. (J Norton)
The Wilson children meet an elderly woman who is studying to become a witch. They go on magical trips with her that are both exciting and dangerous.

Paolini, Christopher. Eragon. (J Paolini)
In Aagaesia, a fiftee-year-old boy of unknown lineage called Eragon finds a mysterious stone that weaves his life into an intricate tapestry of destiny, magic, and power, peopled with dragons, elves, and monsters. Sequel: Eldest

Riordan, Rick. The Lightning Thief. (J Riordan)
Twelve-year-old Percy Jackson learns he is a demigod, the son of a mortal woman and Poseidon, god of the sea. His mother sends him to a summer camp for demigods where he and his new friends set out on a quest to prevent a war between the gods. Sequels: The Sea of Monsters and The Titan's Curse.

Ruby, Laura. The Wall and the Wing. (J Ruby)
In this hilarious, adventure-filled fantasy set in a city where almost everyone can fly, a girl discovers she has a newfound power: she can become invisible. She soon teams up with a belligerent boy to figure out who and what she is.

Tolkein, J.R.R. The Fellowship of the Ring. (J Tolkein)
Elderly hobbit Bilbo Baggins relinquishes possession of a golden ring possessing magical powers to Frodo, his youthful heir. Charged with casting the ring into the fires from which it was forged, the young hobbit begins an arduous trek across Middle-earth, accompanied by a stalwart band including his best friend Sam, the mercurial wizard Gandalf, the warrior Aragorn, and the blustery Gimli. Opposed by the treacherous sorcerer Saruman and the demonic emissaries of Sauron, the Dark Lord, this ever-embattled Fellowship makes its way slowly toward the dark land of Mordor. Sequels: The Two Towers, The Return of the King, and The Hobbit (prologue)

Winthrop, Elizabeth. Castle in the Attic. (J Winthrop)
A gift of a toy castle, complete with silver knight, introduces William to an adventure involving magic and a personal quest.

Wrede, Patricia. Dealing with Dragons. (J Wrede)
Bored with traditional palace life, a princess goes off to live with a group of dragons and soon becomes involved with fighting against some disreputable wizards who want to steal away the dragons' kingdom. Sequels: Searching for Dragons, Talking to Dragons, and Calling on Dragons.

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Updated 1/09