Thursday 19 October 2017

Witch for a Week by Kaye Umansky and Ashley King (Children's, 7 years +, 10E/10E)

 5th October 2017, Simon & Schuster Children's, 192 pages, Paperback, Review copy 

Summary from Simon and Schuster
When Elsie Pickles offers to house-sit the mysterious home of local witch Magenta Sharp, she has no idea what she's getting herself into. Left with a talking raven and a scruffy dog for company, a magical tower that has a mind of its own and a book of instruction called Everything You Need to Know, what could possibly go wrong?

With an assortment of weird and wonderful neighbours banging at the door and a box of volatile magical ingredients that must be used immediately, Elsie finds out that looking after Magenta's home might not be as easy as she first thought ... does she have what it takes to be a witch for a week or will it all end in a magical disaster?

Nayu's thoughts
I don't remember reading many of Kaye's popular Pingwiffy series, but I hope to read every book in Elsie's adventure! They are nice, nothing overly nasty or gross, no snakes!!!, lots of laughter (+ eggs) and plenty of mayhem (+ toads). I was sad when t ended, event though it's obvious Elsie will be back in Magenta's home to learn more magic. I like how she stubbornly refused to do anything magical but ends up so curious that she simply can't help but try making eggs and frogs appear and disappear. She finds it rather fun! 

Talent isn't all that Elsie has. Her apttude for good customer service gives her the vital skills to deal with the unique characters who are determined to enter Magenta's tower while Magenta is visitng family. She knows how to make them happy when they are a bit miffed at having their desires thwarted...including the ill fated love spell. I'd have liked more page time from the clearly sentient tower, but Im sure that will happen in later books (this can't just be a single book!) Cranky witch companions like Corvette add more hilarity to the already enjoyable tale about a young girl with higher aspirations than in her distinctly unprospering family business. I wanted Elsie to stay with Magenta forever, but she does like the chaos of her family (so did I!) and Magenta doesn't need her full time, not just yet. 

Find out more on Kaye's website.  

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