Preview: ‘You Wish’ — A New Twist In The Genie Of The Lamp Tales & A Delightful Magical Journey Awaits

“What if you found a genie’s magic lamp, and rubbed it only to discover that YOU were the genie?”

That’s the tagline for the delightful You Wish by Jeff Victor, a new book coming out from Top Shelf on 9th January 2024…

According to Bone‘s Jeff Smith, this one’s “A whimsical new twist on the genie legend! This book is gorgeous!” – which is something I’m absolutely not going to argue with based on the copy I’m looking at right now doing this preview.

In a fully realised world of magic and magical characters, Jeff Victor tells a fun tale of 10-year-old tomboy Avery who’s about to discover that her family history is a lot stranger than she could ever have guessed.

Victor’s got a playful, engaging drawing style of big-headed characters and cartoonish details (and I don’t use that shorthand disparagingly – just take a look at the cars in the preview below to see what I mean).

Set initially somewhere looking very much American mid-west, with the big open skies and barren landscape, Avery’s got a loving Dad who only wants the best for her and continually tells her she’ll be “the toughest girl in the valley,” to which Avery’s telling response is “Oh geez, Dad, I’m the only girl in the valley.”

Avery works and lives at Dad’s gas station, a normal 10-year-old tomboy who wants a little excitement in a place where that’s thin on the ground. Well, you know the old saying about being careful what you wish for? oh yes, that, and in spades.

It all goes very weird for her (and wonderful for us) when she turns up an old lamp in the shack out back and… well, you’ve read the tagline, so it’s no surprise to anyone that this happens…

Holy moly indeed.

Even more surprising… the thingy from the lamp recognises the place. Because the thingy from the lamp isn’t a genie, it’s a herald, whose job it is to announce the arrival of a genie. Yes, there’s a process to all this, who knew?

Anyway, the reason the herald, Gribblet, recognises the place is that it was here a while back. Another genie, a very unusual outcome…

I won’t go into much more of the story, that gives you plenty to be getting on with. Suffice it to say that baby Avery was very much against the rules and that’s why her mom’s not around.

But, with Avery’s newfound genie powers (even if they don’t work all too well quite yet) and the help of Gribblet, a plan is set in place – it’s time to rescue mom!

Cue magical adventures and a journey into fantastical, supernatural worlds where Avery gets to discover her powers, find and save mom, reunite her family, and uncover the secrets of just who she is.

It’s a really lovely tale that should delight both young and old, perfect for grades 4 and up and everyone that loves something whimsical and fantastical in their lives.

You Wish (Book 1)

Written and illustrated by Jeff Victor
Published by Top Shelf on 9 January 2024
(Grades 4 and up)

Now, the Top Shelf preview, pages from across the book…