It is a surprise to find that Molly
Moon’s Incredible Book of Hypnotism is more than just a funny story about
an orphan who learns how to hypnotize people.  It turns out to be a profoundly
moral children’s story about exploitation, character, and learning to care for
people.  Molly Moon lives at Hardwick House, an orphanage in a small British
town, run by horrible women.  Nearly everyone is nasty to Molly, and she wishes
she could fly away.  Her only real friend is Rocky, another orphan, and even he
seems to be getting annoyed with her for getting into trouble all the time.  But
she discovers a book on hypnotism at the local library, and she finds a way to
get away from Hardwick House and she ends up in New York City.  She stars in a
musical and robs a bank, all through the power of hypnotism.  She has to find a
way to thwart the dastardly plans of Professor Nockman, who wants to get his
hands on the hypnotism book for his own nefarious purposes.  Readers will be
glad to know that Molly survives and learns some valuable lessons.

Georgia Byng’s writing resembles Roald
Dahl’s fiction for children in both its fantastic imagination and the depth of
human cruelty it portrays.  What’s more, it acknowledges the satisfaction of
vengeance.  Molly gives instructions to the hypnotized cook at Hardwick House
to make the meals of the children who are nasty to her very spicy, and the
hateful Miss Adderstone stands on the stage at the local talent contest 
wearing her pink frilly nightie and rubber boots, with a bra on her head and
her false teeth hung on a string round her neck.  Molly starts to realize
though that sometimes in using her hypnotic powers, she may be going too far,
and she has the capacity to really hurt people.  Even when she is helping
people, it might not be right to use hypnotism because it involves deception. 
She also realizes that the advertising she so enjoys for Cube soda uses similar
methods to hypnotism, and it is equally deceptive.  But maybe the most striking
point in the book is when Molly and her friend Rocky discuss whether one of the
villains is truly nasty all the way through or whether he became like that
because of how he was treated as a child.  They decide to be compassionate and
give him a chance to become a better person.  While their methods of moral
education are unorthodox, they are also hilarious.  

Molly Moon’s Incredible Book of
Hypnotism is very enjoyable; a great book for parents and children to enjoy
together.  Highly recommended. 

© 2004 Christian Perring. All
rights reserved.