Other editions of book Wizards: An Amazing Journey Through the Last Great Age of Magic

A fascinating journey from the days of dried newts and powdered worms to the discoveries of modern physics.Wizards takes us back to the 1500s and 1600s, when real live sorcerers read the future in crystal balls, when villagers cast spells on their neighbors—when the magical arts were a normal part of everyday life.Meet 12-year-old Isaac Newton. The year is 1655, and Isaac is boarding with a family that runs an apothecary shop in Grantham, England. Here, he learns to mix his own healing potions and marvels at the secret powers of nutmeg and dried newts. In this atmosphere of magic and mystery, the determined schoolboy sets out to master the hidden powers that make the world work. He’s determined to learn the art of wizardry.Isaac’s quest takes him deep into the heart of the Great Age of Magic—into the world of sorcerers conjuring cloaks of invisibility, wizards divining the future and alchemists searching for the philosopher's stone.In 1693, now a famous scientist and mathematician, he has already pushed the world into the Scientific Revolution and turned it upside down with his theory of gravity. Does his quest to learn the art of wizardry lead Isaac Newton from sorcery to science?

This book takes readers back to the 17th century, when magic was part of everyday life. Wizards begins in 1655 with 12-year-old Isaac Newton serving as apprentice to an apothecary. He learns to mix healing potions and marvels at the secret powers of nutmeg and dried newts. In this atmosphere of magic and mystery, the determined schoolboy sets out to master the hidden powers that make the universe work.Author Candace Savage describes natural magic, divination, astrology, alchemy, and the dark arts. She also explains how magic and science were interconnected during that era, and how most people saw no distinction between them. The wizards' quest to unlock the secrets of the hidden world leads some, including Newton, into the realm of mathematics and science. These pioneers develop mathematical formulas and calculate the effects of gravity, among other scientific accomplishments. As the book ends in 1693, Newton, now famous for his laws of gravity and thermodynamics, has helped lead the Scientific Revolution.