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1lturpin42
I read this one in my junior high school's library, around 1992 or 1993. A brother and sister are staying with some distant relative? over the summer. The sister, the elder, finds a mailbox in a nearby vacant lot and writes her name on it. Her brother gets jealous of her find and writes his name on it too. It has seven stars on the side.
The next night, the girl dreams about the mailbox and sees one of the stars is glowing. The next morning, she finds a letter inside, containing a silver charm shaped like a broomstick and a note that reads "SWEEP CLEAN". She suddenly feels a compulsion to clean her room.
The next night, her brother dreams about the mailbox and sees the second star glowing. The next day he finds a package inside the mailbox with a silver charm of some kind (I forget what).
The third night, the girl dreams about the mailbox and sees the third star glowing and wonders why it wasn't the second star. The next day she learns that her brother got a letter from it the day before, and is livid. Her gift is a small silver mirror that produces a ghostly version of herself with all her worst behavior traits.
The mailbox continues in this way, giving three letters to each of them, then on the seventh night it gives a small globe to them both showing their new home or something like that.
I remember I read this one when I was on a fantasy and magic kick, and read every fiction book in the card catalog (yes, with real cards) under the heading "magic". :-)
The next night, the girl dreams about the mailbox and sees one of the stars is glowing. The next morning, she finds a letter inside, containing a silver charm shaped like a broomstick and a note that reads "SWEEP CLEAN". She suddenly feels a compulsion to clean her room.
The next night, her brother dreams about the mailbox and sees the second star glowing. The next day he finds a package inside the mailbox with a silver charm of some kind (I forget what).
The third night, the girl dreams about the mailbox and sees the third star glowing and wonders why it wasn't the second star. The next day she learns that her brother got a letter from it the day before, and is livid. Her gift is a small silver mirror that produces a ghostly version of herself with all her worst behavior traits.
The mailbox continues in this way, giving three letters to each of them, then on the seventh night it gives a small globe to them both showing their new home or something like that.
I remember I read this one when I was on a fantasy and magic kick, and read every fiction book in the card catalog (yes, with real cards) under the heading "magic". :-)
2SylviaC
It's Seven Spells to Sunday by Andre Norton and Phyllis Miller. Your description is excellent--I immediately pictured the book in my mind. I think the kids might be foster children. I know I enjoyed reading it, long ago.
3lturpin42
Wow, thank you! That was fast! Yeah, those two gifts in particular really stood out in my mind. And I'd almost forgotten about the old lady and her knitting.
