Now You See It . . .

By Vivian Vande Velde

Book Overview

Wendy isn't as blind as a bat--there are bats that can see better than she can. Which is why, when her new glasses break, she's all too happy to wear the dorky pair of sunglasses she finds on the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0152053115
• ISBN13: 9780152053116
• Release Date: January 2005
• Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.3" x 0.6" x 5.5"
• Age Range: 12 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 7 and higher

Customer Reviews

Wonderful!

Written in the first person our Wendy is a smart, jaded 2007 girl who knows how to deal! But being a tennager she ISN'T dealing with her feelings of lose and isolation, simply put her Family. Being a normal teenager she is instead sublimating all her problems into her looks.. she hates her glasses. In an act of pure tennage vanity she accidentally breaks her normal glasses and being blind, replaces them with the only other ones at hand- a pair of seemingly perscription sunglasses found on her front lawn. And the world starts looking pretty different through them! Or should I say PEOPLE do! Entering into a world of faerie our Wendy is about to have an adveture that will change how she sees the world ^ ^ Simply put I loved this book. I was proud when Wendy was on her home turf and smartly sensing danger. I was alittle annoyed by her teenaged selfishness, but that's only to be expected. And I cried at the end. If there are any sequels I'm already in line! I'm already looking into the author's other series/books. I'd recommend this book to any veteran fantasy fan, and any new one for that matter!

Now You See It....

We are on dangerous ground. What if I did or said something that changed history? Hello. I'm Wendy, and I'm your granddaughter, and I accidentally came bac to the 1950s, and now I'm looking for a way back. It might be enough to scare her out of ever having children, and then I'd never be born. As Wendy said this, she thought of her grandmother and how distant she had become since her childhood years. Wendy Selmeyer was in for an adventure when she found a random pair of sunglasses, that she later finds out enables her to see certain people differently, on her front lawn. These glasses later become the reason why she is being stalked by the two people who appear differently form behind the lenses of the glasses, Tiffanie and Julian. When Wendy realizes she is the cause of Julian being trapped by an elf relative of his, she, her grandmother as a teenager, a dog, Tiffanie, and a Kazaran Dahaani crature called a spreenie. This book is definitely recommendation worthy. This book was one of a kind because it makes you use your imagination to actually get what is going on. When Wendy wears the glasses she sees things that naturally she couldn't see before, especially since she has nowhere near perfect vision. She sees people with different facial features, people at a different age, and even the famous "dead" people. It was really interesting to read this and picture what she saw as if it were yourself seeing these things. Another reason is because it was a mystery and fantasy, but still a real-life thing at the same time. It dealt with topics that people deal with everyday. In the book Wendy refers back to her absent father and her mother's current husband Bill, and his daughter, her stepsister, Gia. She also shares her feelings with the readers about how she missed her grandmother how she used to be, without the loss of her memory. It was really a good way to connect with the readers since a lot of them might be in some way or another experiencing the same pain and feelings that she was. I also really liked this book because it made me laugh. There were at least 10 different parts in the book where I laughed out loud or just smiled at the thought of something that had happened in the book actually happening. For instance, Wendy's little spreenie pal, Larry, did some pretty out there stunts throughout the book, some of which were Laugh-Out-Loud worthy. Now You See It... by Vivian Vande Velde was a great book in more ways than one. It was funny, relevant to real-life situations, and very imaginative. This is one of those books that you might even think of going back to read it again, just for the thrill. J. Moss

Now you see it . . . Fantasy in disguise . . .

If anything, "Now you see it . . ." is a good-time adventure focused on a girl named Wendy, who doesn't have the best life in the world. Her grandmother suffers from the mental disorder Alzheimer, while she visits every day in hopes that maybe she will remember her, Wendy's life with her family isn't all that it's cracked up to be either. She has a sister she barely communicates with, and a mother who doesn't seem to notice her troubles (though I cannot remember if the mother chose favorites or not). Life at school isn't wonderful either; Wendy has just lost her glasses and doesn't want to wear goggles as a substitute. Isn't she lucky that she happens to stumble across a pair of sunglasses that are exactly her prescription (though she isn't thrilled about wearing them at first). Wendy is on her way to school one day, the bus is stopped because of an accident. The entire student body proceeds to school on foot and that's when Wendy notices something she never noticed before; She could two of the deceased that were involved in the accident. Even worse she starts to see the popular school cheerleader as a decrepit looking hag trying pass off as a teenager, the school nerd appears to have pointed ears (like an elf) and Imp like creatures climbing out of a girl's bag hiding her lucky pen. From t here Wendy's so called bad luck only gets worse. "Now you see it . . ." is a book that I really got into from start to finish, thus completing it in 3-days. The character Wendy's adventures are just the kind of thing I look forward to in a book for teens, the characters she meets are quite interesting (especially the sock-eating Spreenie) and have diverse personalities, if not quirks. I loved the way the author incorporated the subplot concerning the glasses that Wendy found and the strange supernatural powers it possesses. I recommend this book to anyone who wants a good read out of an unlikely source. [a 5 out of 5]

Must Read!

Now you see it is one of my favorite books, it kept me going and I found I couldn't put it down. It was somewhat short though and I found myself a little dissapointed that it ended so suddenly but I would gladly read it over again. It is of a girl Wendy who discovers a pair of sun glasses that let her see an unknown world of great adventure and in which she discovers new friends and learns not to judge someone on their looks.

You'll be sorry when it's over

There are some books I read like medicine -- because they're good for me. And there are some that take me on such a wonderful ride that I'm sad to see it end. Now You See It is a fast, funny ride that leaves you longing for more. Wendy is a perfectly normal teen thrown into totally bizarre circumstances and her reactions ring true every time. We believe she sees dead people and we believe she slips into a magical land that completely freaks her out. The humor, the voice, and the story work together to catch you up and sweep you along with Wendy. You too will believe you finally know where those disappearing socks really go! I only wish I could read it for the first time again and again.