Five Children and It — Edith Nesbit / E. Nesbit

“Five minutes before, the children had had no idea that there was such a thing as a sand-fairy, and now they were talking to it as though they had known it all their lives.”

The children discover the odd-looking, cranky creature while digging in a gravel pit, and a wonderful discovery it is too. For “It” grants them a wish a day lasting until sunset. The difficulty and the delight lie in making sensible wishes -- and, inevitably, things don't always happen the way they should.

First published in 1902, Five Children and It was an instant success for E. Nesbit and is an enduringly popular book with readers today.