The Witch Who Stormed the Palace

Gr 3-6–Faye Gardner is a 12-year-old girl with a fluffy white cat tail and white cat ears on her head of black hair, who anticipates becoming the first Witch of the West. Despite the fact that the ghost of the Wizard of the West chose her after she saved the kingdom from the Shadow Queen, the other wizards of the North, South, and East are stuck in their ways and don’t think a girl is worthy. In this sequel to The Girl Who Kept the Castle, Faye is once again presented with a trial created by the wizards. The evil Queen and her crown hijack this event, breaking the foundations of the Balance and causing the island of Solum’s to split at the seams. Faye must channel the hope of the people to break down the walls that have outlawed magic to start creating a new and equal world. While a quick introductory summary is provided, readers will have a better sense of the world having read the previous volume. This is a classic good-versus-evil fantasy, and while some characters have quick changes of heart, it goes with the nature of the story. Readers will want to crawl inside this world to taste the dragonpuff cookies, ride on a Devil Duster vacuum, and smell the glorious flowers and plants. There is the overarching theme of women having been oppressed by the men in power; having so many residents of the island rebel against the status quo by supporting Faye’s success adds a welcome level of social change. It is unclear how diverse this world is, since the human characters described mainly have blond hair or white skin.