The Mr. Clean Magic Eraser is a popular cleaning product that has gained recognition for its ability to easily remove dirt, grime, and stains from a variety of surfaces. It is a white, rectangular sponge-like pad that measures about 4 inches long and 2 inches wide. The Magic Eraser is made of a melamine foam material, which is known for its unique cleaning properties. Many people have found the Magic Eraser to be highly effective in removing stubborn marks and stains that traditional cleaning methods often struggle to eliminate. It requires only a small amount of water to activate its cleaning power.
Grandmarina treats the king like a child when he protests and insists that he does not ask questions, but “be good” and do as he is told. She tells him at the end of the meal Princess Alicia will leave a bone on the plate and he is to tell her to dry it, and polish it until it shines. The fishbone will grant her a wish—any wish—provided she ask for it at the right time.
The eldest, Princess Alicia helped care for her brothers and sisters, especially because her mother was often ill and her father works in an office all day. So the Princess Alicia said, Laugh and be good, and after dinner we will make him a nest on the floor in a corner, and he shall sit in his nest and see a dance of eighteen cooks.
It requires only a small amount of water to activate its cleaning power. This makes it convenient and easy to use, as it does not require the use of additional cleaning products or chemicals. The Magic Eraser can be used on a variety of surfaces, including walls, countertops, floors, appliances, and even shoes.
The Magic Fishbone
Have you ever felt intimidated by a book? Are there any authors who overwhelm you simply by reputation? Tolstoy perhaps? Famous for Anna Karenina and War and Peace, he is not exactly known for brief or immediately accessible literature. How about Nathaniel Hawthorne, Aldous Huxley, or T. S. Eliot? What about Charles Dickens? Sure, you know and have probably seen a few too many amateur theater renditions of A Christmas Carol, but what about A Tale of Two Cities? Our Mutual Friend? Oliver Twist? Would you like to impart to your children a greater ability to read, discuss, and appreciate these authors than you had when you completed your formal education? I know this is certainly a goal for me.
As a classical educator, I desire that by the time my daughter is ready to graduate from high school, she will have the tools of learning at her disposal—that no field of inquiry will be closed to her, no author will be off limits for her. There are many ways that we are working to accomplish this—such as mastering the weekly memory work in Foundations and studying the structure of language in Essentials—but reading and discussing good books together has always been our most fruitful strategy in this endeavor.
Several years ago, I made a wonderful discovery that has rendered this approach even more rewarding. Did you know that each of the authors mentioned in the opening paragraph, while primarily famous for their books for adults, also wrote stories for children? Can you imagine your children being introduced to “The Waste Land” and exclaiming, “T. S. Eliot? Oh, I love him!” They will if you have read “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” with them. War and Peace will sound significantly less intimidating to your students when they have read Childhood, Leo Tolstoy’s semi-autobiographical novel about a ten-year-old boy growing up in pre-revolutionary Russia. They will have developed a personal relationship with Tolstoy and will want to get to know him better. The mention of The Scarlet Letter will be less likely to daunt your Challenge I students if they have encountered Hawthorne’s engaging retellings of Greek myths for children in A Wonder Book and Tanglewood Tales. Similarly, I am confident that A Tale of Two Cities will immediately strike your Challenge II student as a more compelling title in the syllabus if they have previously enjoyed Charles Dickens through his rollicking fairytale “The Magic Fish-Bone.”
Certainly the themes, plots, and characters of their children’s literature differ in significant ways from the authors’ offerings for adults; but then again, there are many similarities. Eliot’s poetry is richly satisfying, and his turns of phrase are surprising and wonderful whether you encounter him in his magnum opus the “Four Quartets,” in his landmark modernist poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” or in his whimsical verses about amusing cats. His use of language is exquisite throughout. Tolstoy’s penetrating insights into human character, motivations, and interactions enrich each of his works, Childhood included.[i] Unsurprisingly, Hawthorne’s retellings of Greek myths are structured in ways that also allow him to reflect and remark on New England culture. Dickens’ charming fairy tale “The Magic Fish-Bone” introduces the ingredients of poverty, resourcefulness, and rapid fluctuations of fortune that permeate his many novels.
I would like to use “The Magic Fish-Bone” to share some ideas on how you might use these wonderful stories to help your children make an early personal acquaintance with some of the best authors. This particular tale is the story of the princess Alicia, the eldest of nineteen children aged seven months to seven years, and her impoverished parents King Watkins the First and his wife the Queen. At a stop by the fishmongers on his way to work, King Watkins encounters the good Fairy Grandmarina who explains that, as a present from her, Alicia will find a fishbone on her plate that evening, which she must clean, dry, polish, and save. It will grant her one wish, but only if she chooses to make her wish at the right time. Grandmarina’s prediction comes to pass. However, the following morning a series of misfortunes, illnesses, and accidents begins to occur to the family, and with each successive crisis, the Princess Alicia must discern whether it is the right time to make her wish. She wisely infers from Grandmarina’s rather cryptic message the circumstances necessary for the wish to be granted, and she patiently reserves her wish for the perfect moment. The incredible events that take place in response to her wish are too surprising and entertaining to relate here. You will simply have to read the book. Find it for as little as one cent on Amazon!
One of the first things your children may notice when you read the book together is the liberal use of synonyms and the repetition of certain words, phrases, or verbal exchanges throughout the story. While the repetition certainly contributes to the tone and development of the story, it also offers the perfect time to mention that, for most of his career, Dickens wrote serialized stories for periodicals and was paid by the word. Ask your children to observe instances of repetition, and to consider what purpose they may serve in the story—whether building suspense, reminding the reader of the qualifications for the wish, or simply filling a word quota. For instance, the king goes to his office where “he wrote and wrote and wrote, till it was time to go home again.” This depiction of King Watkins’ day may represent a child’s simplistic view of what her father does at work. Could it also serve to pad the text a little bit? Yet, would the tedious nature of the father’s job have been fully communicated by one “wrote”? To extend the discussion, consider offering your Essentials student a penny per word for their next composition, and just see if they don’t come up with a few more quality adjectives than in previous assignments!
You may also notice that Dickens rarely uses personal pronouns when titles or other descriptions will do. So, the good Fairy Grandmarina is never “she” but is always “the good Fairy Grandmarina,” “the old lady,” or very occasionally simply “the lady.” Encourage your children to consider how referring to her in this way heightens her distinction, but also challenge them to find out how much this simple practice padded the story’s word count. With these conversations, you will have introduced your children to recognizable features of Dickens prose that will appear wherever they encounter him later.
You will see frequent references to the impoverished King’s discouragement that quarter-day never seems to arrive, but is always a long way off. This is an excellent opportunity to briefly sketch an outline of Dickens’ poverty-stricken childhood, and to ask them to consider what the implications of being paid quarterly rather than bi-weekly might be. Can they see how careful money-management and savings would be paramount under those circumstances, and how even families with several working members like the Dickens family were susceptible to stints in debtors’ prison when unanticipated financial obligations came up? You may also consider introducing your older children to the British currency system before decimalization in 1971. In so many of Dickens’ novels, as well as in the rest of the British literature they encounter, your children will benefit from an understanding of the approximate values of a farthing, penny, shilling (or bob), florin, crown, pound, quid, and sovereign. For example, in A Christmas Carol, we learn that Bob Cratchit earns fifteen bob a week. What kind of yearly salary is he bringing home? Is the family really as destitute as we naturally assume them to be?
Other significant and recurring themes that we experience through the story of the princess Alicia are children who feel an enormous amount of responsibility for their families; children who may in some respects be wiser or more admirable than the adults in their lives; and justice being served through sudden, unexpected reversals of fortune—both good and bad.
So grab “The Magic Fish-Bone” from your local library (which is where we found it), or order a copy for your family, and get ready for a wonderful story and some great conversations. And be on the lookout! I have absolutely not exhausted the list of well-known authors who have written for children. The Nobel Prize winning author Pearl S. Buck wrote some lovely children’s Christmas stories; her “Christmas Day in the Morning” is a family favorite. Oscar Wilde’s The Happy Prince and Other Stories is a rich collection of tales that you will ponder long after you have closed the volume. So take advantage of these fantastic opportunities to meet these authors in their own words and on their own terms through their children’s literature. It will prepare your children for the themes, styles, and structures of the adult works. It will train them to love beautiful language, artfully composed sentences, and complex plots and characters. It will leave them eager to meet the authors again.
I think our next read may be Upton Sinclair’s The Gnomobile: A Gnice Gnew Gnarrative with Gnonsense, but Gnothing Gnaughty. I suspect that when it comes time to read The Jungle, we won’t feel intimidated at all.
[i] Because human character, motivations, and interactions are not always what we would desire them to be, I would wait to read this with children of dialectic age. The young antagonist is transparent with his fluctuating emotions—affection, rage, envy, love, contentment, sorrow—as he navigates many unfamiliar situations including the death of his beloved mother.
But that was not the worst of the good Queen’s illness. O, no! She was very ill indeed, for a long time. The Princess Alicia kept the seventeen young Princes and Princesses quiet, and dressed and undressed and danced the baby, and made the kettle boil, and heated the soup, and swept the hearth, and poured out the medicine, and nursed the Queen, and did all that ever she could, and was as busy busy busy, as busy could be. For there were not many servants at that Palace, for three reasons; because the King was short of money, because a rise in his office never seemed to come, and because quarter day was so far off that it looked almost as far off and as little as one of the stars.
It is effective at removing scuff marks, crayon marks, soap scum, grease, and stains from various types of surfaces. However, it is recommended to test it on a small, inconspicuous area first, as it may cause slight abrasions on delicate surfaces. The Magic Eraser is also known for its versatility. It can be cut or shaped into smaller pieces to clean hard-to-reach areas or smaller objects. Its sponge-like texture allows it to conform to the shape of the surface being cleaned, making it easier to tackle corners and crevices. One of the key advantages of the Magic Eraser is its ability to remove stains without the need for harsh chemicals. It is generally considered safe to use and does not leave behind any residue or strong odors. However, it is important to follow the instructions provided by the manufacturer and to avoid using it on areas that may be sensitive to abrasion. Overall, the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser has become a popular household cleaning tool due to its effectiveness, convenience, and versatility. It provides an easy and efficient way to tackle tough stains and marks, making it a favorite among many homeowners and cleaning enthusiasts..
Reviews for "Discover the Magic of Mr. Clean Magic Eraser: The Cleaning Tool That Does It All"
1. Jennifer - 2 stars - I was really excited to try the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser after hearing all the hype about it, but I was left feeling disappointed. While it did erase some stains on my walls, I found that it also left behind a residue that was difficult to clean up. Additionally, the eraser started to break apart after only a few uses, making it not very durable. I wouldn't recommend this product.
2. Josh - 1 star - I bought the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to tackle some scuff marks on my floors, but it did absolutely nothing. I followed the instructions carefully, but the stains remained untouched. I even tried using it with different cleaning solutions, but still no results. It was a waste of money for me, and I definitely won't be purchasing it again.
3. Samantha - 2 stars - I've heard so many good things about the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, but it didn't live up to the hype for me. I used it to clean my bathtub, and while it did remove some stains, it required a lot of scrubbing and elbow grease. I was expecting it to effortlessly erase the grime, but it fell short. I don't find it any better than regular scrubbing sponges or cleaners, so I won't be buying it again.