In it the children re-encounter the Psammead-the "it" in Five Children and It. As it no longer grants wishes to the children, however, its capacity is mainly advisory in relation to the children's other discovery, the Amulet, thus following a formula successfully established in The Phoenix and the Carpet. Gore Vidal called the time-travel book, The Story of the Amulet one in which "Nesbit's powers of invention are at their best."