It is Australia's best selling children's book with almost 5 million sales (as at 2017), and has continually appeared on best seller lists. In 2014 it topped the Australian Booksellers Association list of 50 Favourite Kids’ Books. Possum Magic has also been reviewed by Meanjin, School Library Journal, and Horn Book Guides Booklist wrote: 'This agreeable tale from down under is peppered with Australia-isms, but there is a zest to the story that transcends the language barrier'.

The Canberra Times called it 'a wonderful story, a proper quest amid familiar surroundings.'. Reviews of Possum Magic have generally been positive. Possum Magic is considered a classic in Australian children's literature. When it was accepted by Omnibus Books in Adelaide they asked Fox to reduce the book, then titled Hush the Invisible Mouse, by two-thirds (the original text ran four and a half pages without illustrations) and to change the mice to Australian animals to place emphasis on her Australian theme. Over five years, nine publishers rejected the draft. It is a rhythmical story of Australia's varied landscapes and the animals in them.įox wrote her first draft for Possum Magic in 1978, during a course in children's literature at Flinders University. The story details the duo's adventures as they tour Australia searching for the secret to Hush's visibility. Hush has been made invisible by Grandma to protect her from Australian bush dangers. The two main characters are Grandma Poss and Hush. In 2001, a film was made by the American company Weston Woods and narrated by the author. It concerns a young female possum, named Hush, who becomes invisible and has a number of adventures. Possum Magic is a 1983 children's picture book by Australian author Mem Fox, and illustrated by Julie Vivas.

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