Mystwick School of Musicraft, written by Jessica Khoury, reviewed by Klaudia Janek

Summary:  In this magical fantasy, Amelia Jones wants to follow in her mother’s footsteps and practice Magicraft - a combination of music and magic.  The story starts out with Amelia doing small Magicraft, like getting chickens unstuck.  The author establishes that a lot of what happens in the world, is powered by Magicraft - building, moving, cooking, etc.  Amelia lives with her grandma and her grandma is not supportive of her single-minded determination to get into the music boarding school that her mother went to.  Amelia gets her acceptance letter, but after a series of mishaps, she begins to think that she cannot cut it as a top-level Maestro.  Students arrive at Mystwick by a magic-powered purple Zepplin. Mystwick has beautiful grounds protected by an enchanted forest, with lakes and mountains.  Dangerous elements are being pulled into the school and it is up to Amelia and her friends to save themselves and their school.

Straight Talk for Librarians:  This is a great choice for existing Harry Potter fans.  I think music teachers and students will love the musical vocabulary and the magic that can be played with instruments. This is the first book in a series and I think readers will want immediate access to the rest of the books once they get hooked on this one.  It’s a little sad because Amelia’s mom died and she had to live with her grandma.  But she was very focused and worked hard on what she wanted.  A good lesson from the story is that you have to be true to yourself.  There are a lot of nice friendships formed, and there are some bullies to deal with.  Lots of upper elementary and middle school hijinks that readers will enjoy.  There is humor, adventure a few thrills and lots of magic.  A great choice for older elementary readers and middle-grade readers.  It’s a chapter book with a few beautiful illustrations that capture pivotal scenes.  I think the storyline, writing, character and setting development are appropriate to the target audience.  I think it’s a great free-choice read, fun for literature circles and/or summer reading.  Highly recommended for a middle-grade school library.