The first-person, confessional style of writing, in the form of an internal monologue outpouring onto Eva’s diary, acts as a catalyst for the emotionally stressed young heroine. Writing in her diary re-veals her emotional struggles against social injus-tice; these incrementally help her mature and fight for her own values.
--Anta Katsiki-Guivalou, Professor at National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

★The book won Greek IBBY Award and Diavazo Literary Magazine Award!
★English translation available.

When little Eva discovered that her wishes for people would always come true in reverse, she began using her mysterious powers to avenge the injustices of the world.
Eva's mother was certainly different. Her hair was as red as it could possibly be, and flowers bloomed whenever she spoke, and animals seemed to like her. Eva's father said that Eva's mother had been born in the wrong time, but was Madelaine really out of place in that time? Madelaine taught her daughter to punish wrongdoers with reversed wishes. Eva used her first reversed wish to punish the annoying neighbor. As she grew older, Eva would discover that life was full of miracles and magic. She would also discover that in order to succeed, one must be willing to fight. Reversed wishes sometimes come true, but sometimes you have to take action and overcome your fears.
Whether you are young or old, whether you realize it or not, magic plays an important role in your life. When strange and unexplained things happen, we all start to believe in a little bit of magic. Eva's mother made the trees in her garden grow taller and more magnificent than any in her neighbor's, just like magic. Like magic, Eva's wishes for people would always come true in reverse. But sometimes, even magic cannot undo what has happened. Eva's father disappeared while on a business trip to Uruguay, and Eva's dog Tido was no longer with her.
"Like Magic" is an engaging novel. It boldly tackles hot topics such as divorce and racism. The author handles these issues in a very clever way, to be admired. She accurately portrays Eva's reaction and coping mechanisms after her father's sudden disappearance, which is sure to move readers. In her novel, Papayani frequently switches between different characters' perspectives, allowing us to gain a deeper understanding of their emotions and making us realize that things are not always what they seem, or that everyone is not always what they seem.

Maria Papayanni (Author)
She studied Greek Language and Literature and worked as a journalist in radio, television, newspapers, and magazines.
Her first book was published in 2001. Ever since she has devoted herself to writing stories, fairy tales, and novels. She loves magical, traditional tales and narrates them to children when she visits schools. She also loves theatre and has penned librettos and verses for musical theatre. Her first book, "Goodnight, Mama," was published in 2001, the same year her second child was born. Her books have enjoyed great success with children and have won numerous awards in Greece, including:
· In 2002, she co-authored "Catch them!" with Philippos Mandilaras, which won the Merit Award by the Greek section of IBBY.
· "As If By Magic" won Greek IBBY Award and the Diavazo Literary Magazine Award
· "The Lonesome Tree" won the State Prize and the Diavazo Literary Magazine Award.
"You Will Win Another Day" has been translated into multiple languages.
· She was nominated for the Hans Christian Andersen Award 2020 and 2022.

After all, she believes that books have wings:
“Children know well that when the sentence Once upon a time is uttered the door opens to the place where anything may happen. And children need the world of imagination in order to understand everyday life and its difficulties.”

In her own words:
I was born in Larissa, under Mount Olympus, where the 12 gods of antiquity lived.
I grew up in a large family where everyone had the gift of telling stories. Not fairy tales, but everyday life stories, which were told over huge tables in the summer; stories would add taste in our life, the way salt and pepper add flavour to our food. I recall tears alternating with laughter. These stories seemed to me like miracles, because they could release great powers. I don’t mean to say that everyone in my family was a bit of a liar, but exaggeration was something common. That’s how I came to believe that in the quiet, provincial town where I was growing up anything could happen. Growing up, instead of confessing to myself that my family used to exaggerate, I chose to believe that we were ‘special’ and ‘unique’. And I also decided that this was the only way I could tolerate reality and put up with everyday difficulties. By making up stories…
With stories, I have always had a season ticket in my pocket which allowed me to freely come and go between everyday life and the land where… anything may happen.