Witches of Brooklyn

Middle grade graphic novel series 

     Middle grade kids have a real affinity for series books, sometimes to the dismay of parents and teachers who tend not to view them as real literature.  It's easy to see why.  Kids that age want more agency in their lives.  And peers are beginning to supplant family in social life.  But real life peer relationships can be unpredictable, messy, and complicated.

     I vividly recall my daydreams of riding around with Nancy Drew, George, and Bess in Nancy's roadster solving mysteries.  Some of my classmates preferred the Bobsey Twins.  My daughters went through a Babysitters Club phase.  They would have loved Witches of Brooklyn which has the added charm of graphic novel format.

     Effie, the perky protagonist of Sophie Escabasse's Witches of Brooklyn books, is an orphan who was dropped off in the middle of the night to live with her two seriously older aunts.  These are not ladies who would get the children's protective services stamp of approval.  They're witches.  It turns out that in their home young Effie has magical powers, powers she has to learn and grow her way into.

     In the first volume, Witches of Brooklyn, the singer Effie considers " the biggest artist of the century!!" turns up at Effie's home with her full entourage.  After Tily Shoo tried a facial cream given her by a fan her face turned red and didn't return to its normal tone.  The witches are her last hope.  And she has to do a big concert in two days.

     In the second volume, What The Hex?  Effie meets the very diverse group of witches that use their powers to troubleshoot in their communities.  One has disturbing news.  One corner of her turf is seeing a lot of drama: car crashes, fights, fainting, falling tree branches, and even people going unexpectedly into labor.  Could someone have roused up a sleeping dragon?

     Meanwhile Effie has problems of her own.  Best friend Berrit has ignored her all Christmas break.  It turned out she's been hanging out with Garance, a new girl from France in their class.  Effie feels invisible and maybe replaced.

     In the third volume, S'more Magic, Effie's aunts send her to summer camp.  It's not like any camp you attended unless your camp was for witches in training and there was a sleeping dragon under the lake where you had swimming lessons.  Those sleeping dragons can get pretty ugly when roused, you know.

     Meanwhile Effie is aghast at all the scheduled swimming time.  She's determined not to go into the water.  She has her reason which she's not about to share.  But how long can she make excuses before someone deduces the truth.

     Lively dialogue and illustrations that perfectly capture plot and characters' emotions and relationships make this trilogy a gem for middle grade readers.  Its graphic novel format will appeal to readers not fond of more traditional ones.

     Heck!  I'm not so patiently waiting for the next volume in the series, hoping I'll get a review copy hot off the press when it comes out.

On a purrrsonal note, well I've just about wrapped up the backpack project for this year.  Other than one family I haven't managed to meet up with yet I've equipped the kids in my trailer park with back to school supplies with a lot of help from my amazing friends.  I have their packs ready.  So now I can have a stash of stuff for when kids run out and start working on backpacks for next year which will be our fourth year.  (Jules)

Oh, no, school is starting much too soon.  I am so not ready to supervise homework and remember all the stuff Jules needs for school and get her to bed and up on time.  A cat's work is never done. (Tobago)

A great big shout out goes out to all the friends who provided money and supplies to once again make the Backpack Project a reality and all the kids heading off to school well supplied.

Tobago and Jules Hathaway 

     

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