# The Great Sloth — The Magic City character guide

> The Great Sloth in The Magic City by E. Nesbit.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** a Great Sloth, the Sloth, the now hardworking Sloth

**First appearance:** 0011-x-the-great-sloth

## Snapshot

A colossal sloth whose contagious sleepiness once paralyzed a city, now condemned to honest labor as the engine of Briskford's revival.

## Who they are

The Great Sloth is the living power source of Briskford, once called Somnolentia, where his drowsiness spread like measles through the whole population. Now bound to eight hours a day at the wheel, he has become an unlikely civic treasure, admired by Brenda for his handsome, distinguished looks and consulted, however drowsily, for his great mind. His cryptic advice and patient endurance make him both comic fixture and genuine helper as the children seek a way back to Polistopolis.

## In the story

### [X: The Great Sloth](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_magic_city_se/chapters/x-the-great-sloth)

Enormous, lazy creature that is tricked into wishing for a water-pumping machine and is forced to work eight hours a day, turning the handle.

### [XI: The Night Attack](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_magic_city_se/chapters/xi-the-night-attack)

Now works eight hours a day; suggests traveling by sitting on cucumbers to reach Polistopolis.

### [XII: The End](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_magic_city_se/chapters/xii-the-end)

Mentioned in the Pretenderette's sentence; she is to teach the Great Sloth to like his work.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_magic_city_se/characters/great_sloth
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_magic_city_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_magic_city_se/characters