It appears to me that students can reach B2 level by studying, but beyond that, many of them encounter an invisible ceiling that doesn't let them develop their language skills any further. So far, it seems to me that these are students who don't read in English. So I decided to make them read as early as possible. And this means not only the textbook readings, not only articles, but literature as well.

C1-level students tend to be bombarded with Swift's 'A Modest Proposal' when they have to learn how to write a proposal, and with Carroll's 'Jabberwocky' when they get a bit overconfident, but also to show that you don't have to know every word to understand a text. I can also bring them any piece of literature from the last two centuries, but I needed something for the lower-level students. And this is how I came to buy this book.

There are five short stories in this book, for intermediate (B1) students. All of them are excellent discussion starters. I felt the first two ('The Fruitcake Special' and 'The Real Aunt Molly') are more likely to be interesting for adult readers than the very young teens I teach at this level. I'm on the fence with the third one even, 'Brains', as these ethical questions might be too difficult to connect with for this age group. However, I'm quite confident about bringing 'The Book of Thoughts' and 'Finders Keepers' to class. The protagonists are still adults, in business and academic environments, but the magical items they acquire are exciting enough to engage a younger audience as well. I can't wait to try these texts with my students, I will definitely update the review with the experience. ( )

Eduard

Five stories about surprising things, full of magic and wise messages. Magic things- fruit cake, which can help you find a husband, a flute which can stop the time, a book that shows the thoughts of other people... I recommend this book very strongly. It's very good on long nights. Well, one night, but you can dream after that... ( )

This is a book of short stories. All the stories are about sudden, and amazing, changes to people's lives. Some of the stories are better than others, but generally they are pretty good. My favourite is the first story, "The Fruitcake Special", which is kind of silly, but fun. ( )