The Headless Cupid facts for kids
First edition (h/b)
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| Author | Zilpha Keatley Snyder |
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| Illustrator | Alton Raible |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Atheneum Books |
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Publication date
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1971 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 203 |
| ISBN | 0-689-20687-9 |
| OCLC | 12873557 |
The Headless Cupid is a children's novel written by Zilpha Keatley Snyder. It was first published in 1971. This book was recognized as a Newbery Honor book in 1972, which is a special award for great children's literature.
Contents
What's the Story About?
The story of The Headless Cupid begins with eleven-year-old David Stanley. His dad, a university professor, gets married again. David now has to get used to many new things. First, he has a new stepmother. Then, his family moves to a strange old house in the countryside. Finally, he meets his new stepsister, twelve-year-old Amanda.
Meeting Amanda
Amanda is not happy about her mom's divorce and new marriage. She is also upset about moving away from the city and her best friend. Amanda says she is a real witch. She arrives at the Stanley home wearing a special outfit. She brings books about magic and a crow in a cage. She claims the crow is her familiar, a pet that helps her with magic.
Amanda offers to share her secrets about magic with David and his younger siblings. These siblings are Janie, Tesser, and Blair. David isn't sure if Amanda's magic is real. But he goes along with her ideas. He wants to get along with Amanda and protect his younger siblings.
Real or Pretend Magic?
Amanda's "witchcraft" might just be pretend. But the Stanley children, especially David and Blair, seem to have some real psychic gifts. These are special abilities, like knowing things before they happen. However, they don't talk about these gifts much.
The old house the Stanleys move into has a spooky past. People say a mischievous ghost, called a poltergeist, once lived there. This poltergeist supposedly caused rocks to fly around. It also chopped off the head of a wooden cupid statue carved into the stairs.
The Poltergeist Returns
When David's dad is away, the poltergeist suddenly becomes active again. It starts causing trouble in the house. David thinks Amanda is behind these strange events. He and Blair eventually catch her pretending to be the poltergeist.
However, one night, something truly surprising happens. A box of rocks, along with the long-lost cupid's head, suddenly falls down the stairs. This incident was not caused by Amanda. Amanda is shaken and admits she faked the earlier poltergeist events. She also confesses to pretending about her other magic encounters. After this, she gives up her witchcraft.
The Real Mystery
David glues the cupid's head back onto the statue. He then learns that four-year-old Blair was the one who dropped the box down the stairs. Blair says a ghost girl told him where to find the box. It contained the rocks and the cupid's head. But Blair tripped while carrying the heavy box, and everything spilled out. Blair doesn't remember anything else about meeting the ghost girl. This leaves David wondering if real supernatural beings might be living in the Stanley home after all.
