October the Fourth---Practical Magic

 

Alice Hoffman has written over 30 novels. I haven't read all of them, but they are on my list. Her genre is known as magical realism. They are a mixture of fact and of fantasy. My favorites are the books about several generations of the Owens family. The first book was "Practical Magic", written in 1995. It was made into a movie in 1998, starring Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock as the magical sisters, Gillian and Sally.  The movie was different than the book. It was one of the few movies I've seen that I preferred. I remember in the book the sisters and Aunts lived in a creepy, scary old house. The house in the movie is one I still dream about. Although this house was never real, there are lots of photos from the movie available online.  Many people have wanted to buy it, but it's a house that never really was!

It was several years before another book telling this story was written. In 2017, "The Rules of Magic" came out, and we learned about the youth of the Aunts. This was followed by "Magic Lessons" in 2020. Magic Lessons told us all about the matriarch o the unlucky in love Owens women. Next week, on October 12, the final story will be available. "The Book of Magic" will tie it all together and let us know how the curse is finally lifted for Sally's daughters. I will be reading it as soon as I can. Unlike most series of novels, these are not written in order. This time I want to read them in chronological order. That means 1. Magic Lessons 2. Rules of Magic 3. Practical Magic 4. The Book of Magic.            Tantalizing Tidbit: Years ago I corresponded with a very interesting woman I met through the internet. She had purchased the actual spellbook used in the movie. Although they only showed a few pages, her book was completely filled with fascinating artwork. I lost touch with her. I hate it when that happens.    Several years ago I participated in a lot of online swaps with some very creative people. One of my partners in a Halloween exchange made a practical magic altered book for me. Here are some of the pages.

  I always enjoy putting the book on display this time of year, and looking through the pages. And of course this is a good time to watch the movie, and to have a Midnight Margarita.