A girl sees red and points her magic finger at the Gregg family when they tell her to mind her own business after she lectures them about hunting animals. What follows is an ordeal for the Gregg family who swap places with the family of ducks they tried to shoot and learn about what it means to be hunted.

The Magic Finger preaches understanding, compassion and forgiveness while also highlighting how action have consequences. While I appreciated the underlying message of the story, I can't say I really enjoyed the book. But I'm also not the target audience. I'm sure children will love a moral tale about a magic finger and the imagery of people with wings and ducks with arms.

I was amused by the Gregg family changing their name to the Egg family by the end. 2 stars for target audience, 1 star for me. ( )

To the Gregg family, hunting is just plain fun. To the girl who lives next door, it's just plain horrible. She tries to be polite. She tries to talk them out of it, but the Greggs only laugh at her. Then one day the Greggs go too far, and the little girl turns her Magic Finger on them. When she's very, very angry, the little girl's Magic Finger takes over. She really can't control it, and now it's turned the Greggs into birds! Before they know it, the Greggs are living in a nest, and that's just the beginning of their problems....

The narrator is an eight-year old girl whose "magic finger" wreaks revenge on whoever upsets her. The Greggs, her duck-hunting neighbours, get a taste of the finger when they ignore the girl's pleas to give up hunting.

This story is intended for younger children. In fact its plot is quite simple and its anti-hunting message is anything but subtle. My girls loved it though... ( )

Familiar elements from The Witches (the strange fates of children changed by witches into porpoises or into paintings) and Matilda (a girl with powers) combine in this novella about a girl who uses her magic finger to teach her next door neighbors - enthusiastic hunters - a lesson. The family of four is changed partly into ducks (they grow wings, and shrink in size), while a family of ducks grow larger and get arms and hands instead of wings. After the experience, the family swears off hunting all creatures forever, to the girl's satisfaction. ( )

Reread this because I actually forgot most of the book. I had this read to me in elementary school and all I remember was a girl with magic powers. I think I liked it better after a second read. I had forgotten she turned a family into ducks. ( )