Midnight Magic: Mirror Mischief

This is the second in the series of eye catching books about magic black cat Midnight and her owner Trixie. Again there is mischief and chaos as Midnight has great fun causing havoc from early in the morning . Smoke puffing from her whiskers is the giveaway sign that she is summoning up some kind of spell. She sneakily turns back time on a school morning and mayhem ensues. This time, it is double trouble though as Midnight's magic takes on a life of its own and her rascal of a reflection comes to life and with a SMASH is released into the house.

There is a real sense of riotous fun in these stories that is very entertaining for its young readers. Nan is always a fantastic character to appear in the stories - in her yoga gear this time - trying to prevent the destruction level caused by misfiring magic rising. Elissa Elwick again illustrates the story with her charmingly fun illustrations that make these characters larger than life. Mirror Mischief is a glossy green (magic potion-coloured) enticing story with rhyming text that the author is so clever with.

Escapist, warm-hearted, gorgeous little chapter book. Ideal for fans of book 1, Midnight Magic, or for new fans of the magic of black cats!

96 pages / Reviewed by Jennifer Caddick, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 5+

Midnight Magic - Mirror Mischief is the second book in the series by Michelle Harrison and Elissa Elwick. Midnight, a black cat, was adopted by a young girl named Trixie, her dad, and her nan. Midnight was born with magical powers and it's those powers that create mayhem on the morning that Trixie is supposed to be getting ready for school.

Midnight creates a twin cat in the bathroom mirror - but whereas Midnight is mischievous, her twin is plain old naughty. Unfortunately, there is an accident with the mirror and the naughty cat escapes, causing complete pandemonium and carnage throughout Trixie's house - think of false teeth that can eat through the door and birds that fly out of the wallpaper. It is a race to capture the naughty cat, one which the whole family joins - but can they return the naughty cat to where it belongs?

Each portion of the text rhymes and this book would be wonderful to be read out loud in an LKS2 - 7+ class. For those confident readers, I'd still suggest the same age range as even though the text is easy to read, it's the rhyming that may prove a little bit tricky to master. Each book in the series is colour coded - this one is green throughout and the illustrations are fun and adorable.

96 pages / Reviewed by Emma Nelson, teacher

Suggested Reading Age 7+