The Hotel Witch by Jessica Miller

A fun, whimsical tale about love, family, determination,

and the power of imagination. Reading Time

Publisher blurb: Sibyl is the apprentice hotel witch at the splendid Grand Mirror Hotel. She is busy each day drawing useful spell patterns to keep the hotel guests happy: spells to shine shoes, spells to remove dust and spells to return lost belongings like hats and gloves to their owners. But Sibyl dreams of other possibilities – wonderful possibilities like her mother returning from the Black Mountains, and like Grandma letting her draw spell patterns from the Book of Advanced and Dangerous Magic. When Grandma gets stuck in last Tuesday, somewhere on the hotel’s thirteenth floor, Sibyl is left to take charge of all the hotel magic – and to solve a mysterious and perplexing problem. Can she find a way to open the Book of Advanced and Dangerous Magic? And will it contain the spell she needs?

Have you noticed that when you read a book about a young witch you keep anticipating that all her spells will go badly wrong and end in disaster. I certainly did that in this book and yes, that does happen a couple of times, but it is in a minor way even though Sibyl is so easily distracted. I cheered when Sibyl does make her wand work in absolutely perfect ways - some small and one, almost a case of life and death when the Shadowmancer takes nearly every shadow and Sibyl is left to fight this evil woman alone. The changing descriptions of the Shadowmancer are also perfect examples of foreshadowing.

Check out this interview with Joy Lawn and Paperbark words. I think readers aged 9+ will enjoy The Hotel Witch - it has 278 pages and uses a larger font. All the extra quirky characters are fun too - Ahmed the elevator attendant, Alphonso the hotel cat and Dora the concierge not to mention the crazy hotel guests. The hotel rooms are also quirky and fun to imagine. The way Sibyl finds the right spell is a delightful detail in this story and not one I have encountered in a story previously - I will leave you to discover this for yourself. You might need to purchase your own magic wand after reading The Hotel Witch - I would certainly like one.

Jessica Miller has written a wonderful story that will keep the audience captivated and enchanted.  This novel will appeal to those lovers of fantasy and adventure. The Hotel Witch is filled with excitement and mystery, friendship, love and self-belief. Read Plus

The Hotel Witch deals with themes of family and friendships, but there is a real focus on learning to work with the things about yourself that others may deem a flaw and how to use these things in a way to benefit you so that they turn into a strength rather than a flaw. This is a lovely, magical book about overcoming obstacles and accepting yourself for who you truly are. A must read for any magic lovers out there who are looking for a bit of fun. Story Links

I picked up The Hotel witch in a school library partly because I liked the cover, I do enjoy stories set in hotels and I recognised the author name because I previously read these two:

Elizabeth and Zenobia

The Republic of Birds

The Bakery of Happiness by Ian Beck

Recently there was a discussion (on a Facebook forum) about the easy reading series Aussie Nibbles and Aussie Bites.  I especially adore the Nibbles titles because they bridge the gap providing terrific stories for newly independent readers. I am quite passionate about this group of children. A couple of years ago I discovered another excellent series - Little Gems. These come from the UK and fit somewhere between Aussie Nibbles and Aussie Bites. Some of the very best UK children's book creator names can be found when you peruse this series. You will see names such as Michael Morpurgo, Kevin Crossley-Holland, Eoin Colfer, Jeremy Strong, Quentin Blake, Anne Fine and Dick King-Smith and many more.

Today I picked up The Bakery of Happiness by Ian Beck.  Ian also wrote The First Third Wish for the Little Gems series (Barrington Stoke). On this blog I have also talked about Out for the Count and The Smile.

The Bakery of Happiness is set in Paris. Each day the baker Paul makes "crusty baguettes, rustic loaves, croissants, pains aux raisins and pains au chocolate". Paul starts work very early. At 7am each day Marie arrives. She pats the dog Gracie and welcomes the school children by name. Each child leaves the shop "as if they had wings on their shoes and were walking on air."

One day a customer arrives - a mysterious stranger. He hears the voice of Marie and is entranced. He asks her to join his opera company. Marie leaves the shop. Paul is left alone wishing he had had the courage to ask Marie out to see a movie. Now it seems it may be too late.

I suggest you head off to your nearest bakery. Pick up some warm croissants, come home and settle down to read this book - it truly is a little gem! And as a bonus the illustrations are filled with light and warmth. One more thing - this is truly a love story and that surely will make you smile.

You can read the first chapter on the publisher web site. The Little Gems were first published in 2012 and there are now more than thirty titles in the series.