The Wish List (novel) facts for kids
First edition
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| Author | Eoin Colfer |
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| Country | Ireland |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | O'Brien Press |
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Publication date
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October 1, 2003 |
| Media type | Print (hardback and paperback) and audio-CD and audio cassette |
| Pages | 256 pp (hardcover edition) |
| ISBN | 0-7868-1863-8 (hardcover edition) |
| OCLC | 52633349 |
| LC Class | PZ7.C677475 Wi 2003 |
The Wish List is an exciting fantasy novel written by Eoin Colfer. He is also famous for the Artemis Fowl series. This book tells the story of Meg Finn, a teenage girl. After a terrible accident, she finds herself in a strange situation. To earn her way to Heaven, Meg must return to Earth. Her mission is to help an elderly man she once tried to rob.
Contents
The Story of Meg's Journey
Meg Finn is a teenager who tries to rob an old man named Lowrie McCall. She wants money to run away from her mean stepfather, Franco. Meg is working with a local tough guy named Belch and his dog. Lowrie catches them breaking in. Belch's dog then attacks Lowrie.
Meg tries to help Lowrie by grabbing his shotgun. She wants to make Belch call for help. But Belch takes the gun from her, and Meg runs away. Belch corners her near an old gas tank. He fires a warning shot, which causes the tank to explode. Meg, Belch, and his dog all die instantly.
Meg's Spirit World Adventure
Meg's spirit enters a tunnel that leads to the afterlife. She also sees Belch's spirit, which has strangely joined with his dog. The Belch-dog creature is immediately sent to Hell. But Meg gets stuck in the tunnel.
Satan becomes interested in Meg because of how she tried to get back at her stepfather. He tells his helper, Beelzebub, to bring Meg's spirit to Hell. Beelzebub looks into Meg's case with St. Peter. St. Peter is the one who decides if people can enter Heaven. They are both surprised to find that Meg's good intentions balance her bad actions.
Without St. Peter knowing, Beelzebub sends a tech wizard named Myishi. Myishi sends Belch and a hologram named Elph to catch Meg. Meg learns about her situation from a tiny tunnel creature called Flit. With Flit's help, Meg returns to Earth as a spirit.
Helping Lowrie's Wish List
Meg decides to do some good by helping the injured Lowrie. He has a "wish list" of four things he wants to fix from his past. The first wish is for Lowrie to finally kiss his first love. She is now a famous TV host. Belch attacks Meg during this, but when the wish is completed, Belch and Elph are sent back to Hell for a while.
Meg and Lowrie complete the second wish easily. They break into Croke Park and score a goal. The third wish is a bit harder. Lowrie wants to punch an old school bully named Brendan Ball. Meg helps Lowrie find Brendan, but Lowrie decides not to punch him.
After Lowrie says goodbye to Brendan, Meg asks Lowrie for help. She wants to punch her stepfather, Franco. Lowrie agrees, but only if Meg shows him why she wants revenge. Meg explains that Franco was lazy and treated her and her mother badly. After her mother died, things got even worse for Meg.
The final straw was when Franco stole her mother's engagement ring. He sold it to buy a new TV. Meg then planned to embarrass Franco. She recorded him being mean to her. She also recorded herself breaking his new TV. Then she showed all this footage to Franco's friends, leaving him totally disgraced.
The Final Wishes
Knowing their time is short, Belch and Elph return to Earth. They find Franco and make him very weak and old. Belch then gets stuck inside Franco's rapidly aging body. Meg and Lowrie arrive and punch Belch, who is now in Franco's body.
Finally, Lowrie and Meg go to the Cliffs of Moher. Lowrie wants to spit over the cliffs to honor a song. Belch and Elph chase them on a motorbike. They manage to stop Lowrie's heart, and Meg is dragged towards Hell.
As Meg returns to the tunnel, Flit reminds her of some special pebbles. These pebbles can give her more time on Earth. Meg uses the pebbles' power to bring Lowrie back to life. She helps him complete his last wish. In her final act of kindness, Meg chooses to give up her remaining time on Earth. She uses it to restore Franco's life and make him young again.
When Meg returns to the tunnel for the third and final time, St. Peter sends her to Heaven. She smells her mother's perfume as she prepares to be reunited with her.
Main Characters
- Meg Finn – She is the main character of the story. Meg is a rebellious teenager.
- Lowrie McCall – An elderly man with many regrets. Meg and Belch tried to rob him.
- Belch Brennan – The main bad guy. He is a teenage tough guy who commits crimes.
- Elph – A computer program that acts like a helper. Myishi created Elph.
- St. Peter – The saint who decides if a person's spirit can enter Heaven.
- Beelzebub – Satan's main helper demon.
Heaven and Hell in the Book
This book shows Heaven and Hell differently from many traditional stories. In The Wish List, Hell is not a place of endless pain. It's more like a place where spirits go to work through their problems. Satan doesn't always enjoy causing pain; he sees it as his job. Beelzebub has to do many boring tasks for Satan, like trying to catch Meg.
Heaven is also not completely perfect. St. Peter sometimes seems to enjoy sending spirits to a waiting area instead of straight to Heaven. He also lets spirits into Heaven who are not totally pure. St. Peter even jokes about his own job. At the end of the book, he says the "Pearly Gates" aren't actually pearly. He says "hole in the sky" just didn't sound as good!
Connections to Other Books
The Myishi Corporation is a company that also appears in The Supernaturalist. This is another children's book by Eoin Colfer. It's possible that Myishi, the character, was the original founder of this company. Colfer has said that he wants his books to be set in the same universe. He compared his book universe to Marvel's superhero universe. Ishi Myishi and the Myishi Corporation are also mentioned in The Fowl Twins.
Meg Finn shares her last name with Conor Finn. Conor Finn is another name for Conor Broekhart, the main character in Eoin Colfer's book Airman. Meg's last name is also the same as Colfer's son, Finn Colfer.
