Jones, Diana Wynne. Chrestomanci Tales
Series note: Series involving the mage Chrestomanci, including The Lives of Christopher Chant,
Charmed Life, The Magicians of Caprona, and Witch Week, Mixed Magics and
Conrad's Fate. The books do not rely on being read in any particular order.
Comments: In general, explicit historical detail in the series is minimal, consisting of general
statements that a series of alternative worlds is the result of divergent historical
events, plus the occasional odd royal name or place name.
Jones, Diana Wynne. The Lives of Christopher Chant
Divergence: 1415 CE
What if: Henry V lost the battle of Agincourt, and the Incas rather than Europeans gained
dominance in the Americas. Also, magical laws were codified in place of scientific technology.
Summary: A young boy who can spirit travel to other worlds finds that he has the capability to
perform great magic, and he is taken into training to become the next great mage
Chrestomanci. But he must also repair the damage done by his unwitting aid to sorcerous
smugglers.
Series note: Part of the Chrestomanci Tales.
Published: Greenwillow 1988 (0688078060); Methuen 1988 (0416107427); Mammoth 1989 (0749700335);
Knopf/Bullseye 1990 (0394822056); Morrow/Beech Tree 1998 (0688163653BUY).
Original in: English.
Translation: Italian by Mariarosa Giardina Zannini as Le vite perdute di Christopher Chant,
Salani 1994 (8877823569).
Translation: Nederlands by Huberte Vriesendorp as De twaalf werelden, Ploegsma 2001 (9021617838).
Jones, Diana Wynne. Charmed Life
Summary: Two English orphans named Chant are sent to live with the great Chrestomanci,
apparently so the elder, overly ambitious sibling may receive instruction in magic.
Series note: Part of the Chrestomanci Tales.
Published: Greenwillow 1977 (0688801382); Macmillan 1977 (0333214269); Puffin 1979 (0140310754);
Knopf 1989 (0394820320); Mammoth 1993 (0749714735); Morrow/Beech Tree 1998 (0688155464BUY).
Original in: English.
Translation: Italian by Gianna Guidoni as Vita stregata, Salani 1992 (8877821922).
Translation: Nederlands by Ank van Wijngaarden as De negen levens, Ploegsma 1980 (9021606720),
2000 (9021617234).
Jones, Diana Wynne. The Magicians of Caprona
Summary: An Italian city-state is beset on all sides by enemies, and apparently from within by a
powerful enchanter. Only the children of two mututally hostile magical families have the
power to save Caprona.
Series note: Part of the Chrestomanci Tales.
Published: Greenwillow 1980 (0688802834, 0688842836); Ace/Tempo 1984 (0441515568); Beaver 1987
(0099542803); Mammoth 1992 (0749712244); Morrow/Beech Tree 1999 (068816613XBUY).
Original in: English.
Translation: Italian by Angela Ragusa as I maghi di Caprona, Salani 1993 (8877822732).
Translation: Nederlands by Huberte Vriesendorp as De tovenaars van Caprona, Ploegsma 2002
(9021618540).
Jones, Diana Wynne. Witch Week
Divergence: 1605 CE
What if: Guy Fawkes succeeded in blowing up Parliament, but at night when no one was there.
Somehow the incident created two timelines with very similar subsequent histories, but in
one magic works and in the other (ours) it doesn't.
Summary: In a world in which witchcraft exists but is brutally repressed, a series of incidents
in a boarding school leads to fears of an inquisitorial visit, and also draws the great
Chrestomanci across time.
Series note: Part of the Chrestomanci Tales.
Published: Greenwillow 1982 (0688015344); Mammoth 1990 (0749701749); Knopf/Bullseye 1989
(039480600X); Green Willow 1993 (0688123740BUY); Beech Tree 1997 (0688155456BUY).
Original in: English.
Translation: Nederlands by Huberte Vriesendorp as Heksenweek, Ploegsma 2002 (9021615541).
Jones, Diana Wynne. Mixed Magics: Four Tales of Chrestomanci
Series note: Part of the Chrestomanci Tales.
Published: Greenwillow 2001 (0060297050BUY); HarperTrophy 2003 (0064410188BUY).
Jones, Diana Wynne. Conrad's Fate
Summary: A boy is dispatched to an estate in the English Alps to determine why his karma is
black. There he meets a crosstime magician and experiences numerous probability shifts as
he learns what's reall happening.
Series note: Part of the Chrestomanci Tales.
Comments: Aside from short descriptions of altered European geography, the story is not
particularly allohistorical.
Published: Greenwillow 2005 (0060747439BUY).
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