The magic Scales
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£12.99 incl postage (signed by author)
Initially set in a sleepy Scottish village, the epic adventure has been described as a kind of Game of Thrones meets Harry Potter.
Full of comedy, family tension, world domination and magic - this, book one in the series, introduces us to the village of Drumfintley through the eyes of 11 year old James Peck.
You see, this isn’t just a book about a young boy looking for his missing father but getting drawn into the final death throes of a dying world by a wizard goldfish. It’s much more than that. It’s about friendship - real, slightly dysfunctional, families - racism - hope - science - asthma - magic - monsters and imagination…
When James’s father disappears up on the moor, the whole village, including James’s mum, thinks David Peck has simply ‘done a runner’. Unconvinced, James tries to retrace his father’s steps and soon finds a weird footprint near the old pile of stones up on the moor. His mind runs riot and he has an asthma attack in his struggle to get back to the village. Soon after, he follows a tall stranger into the local park who he thinks might be linked to his dad’s disappearance. This leads to an encounter with a wizard called Mendel. Banished to Scotland in the form of a goldfish, the wizard makes a pact with James that will take the boy from Drumfintley, and quite a few of its inhabitants, to the magical but doomed world of Denthan.
Village rivalries and family tensions reach breaking point in a world where monsters compete to survive Denthan’s inevitable destruction.
Will James find his dad? Will the villagers escape Denthan in time? Which of the four great races of Denthan will escape extinction?
With Mendel’s nemesis, an evil Hedra wizard call Dendralon, determined to save his reptilian race at any cost, things are heavily stacked against James and his family.
This complex and hefty tome has been enjoyed by hundreds ‘test pilot kids’ already, who have given it great reviews. It has also gained great interest from the charity Asthma UK - as depicting ‘a kid with asthma who still does amazing things…
Press release 20/9/23
20 years after telling his asthmatic son the story by his hospital bed, The Magic Scales has resurfaced in its original form. The book, about a boy with asthma trying to find his missing dad, led Glasgow author, Paul Murdoch, on his own amazing adventure. Originally spotted by Asthma UK as a vehicle to explain the condition to children, they teamed up with Paul and visited hundreds of schools. While talking about the correct use of inhalers, they discussed managing asthma along with storytelling and an imagination workshop.
This with tours of libraries and book festivals led Paul onto other writing adventures including working with a children’s charity in the Balinese jungle. Over 50,000 children, all over the world, have benefited from imagineering presentations inspired by the wizard goldfish, Mendel, and his adventures.
Launched on the 22nd of October 2023, The Magic Scales - book one of The Wizard Goldfish, is set to inspire a whole new generation of kids and young adults.
Neetah Books
324 pages
Trade paperback 9x6 in
RRP: £12.99
Audio book and Kindle coming soon
Cover art Ruth Murdoch
Available in all the usual places, worldwide …
Author contact : Tel Paul on 07784235151
Much more detail at www.paulmurdoch.co.uk