The Temptation Of Wilfred Malachey

BUCKLEY, JR., WILLIAM F.

Publication: Ariel Books, Workman Publishing, 1985, New York

First edition. 8vo. Author's first children's book. Dark blue cloth, titles and device stamped in copper gilt on the front cover and spine, decorated front and rear endpapers, frontispiece, 44 [1] pp., illustrated in color. Illustrated by John Gurney. "Wilfred Malachey is a boy from a modest family who has been sent to Brookfield Academy, an elite boarding school where most of the students are well-off. Because his allowance is small, Wilfred struggles to keep up with the luxuries that other students enjoy. To address this disparity, Wilfred becomes a kind of modern Robin Hood: he steals from richer students so that he and his less privileged friends can enjoy things they otherwise couldn't afford. One day, Wilfred learns of something much more powerful than petty theft: a goblin named Omegagod who lives inside the school’s computer and grants wishes. Wilfred pretends to be 'the favored one' by the goblin, and asks for a million dollars. But Omegagod is not as easily deceived, and while Wilfred scales down his request, the goblin imposes terrifying terms and conditions that force Wilfred to confront whether the price of 'real wealth' is worth the moral and practical cost." Fine in dust jacket.