EVERY LAND NEEDS ITS OWN WITCH.
There’s a monster in the river, a headless horsemen in the drive. And now Granny Aching has gone, there’s only young Tiffany Aching left to guard the boundaries.
It’s her land. Her duty.
But it’s amazing how useful a horde of unruly pictsies can be . . .
Nine-year-old Tiffany Aching needs magic--fast! Her sticky little brother Wentworth has been spirited away by the evil Queen of faerie, and itÂ’s up to her to get him back safely. Having already decided to grow up to be a witch, now all Tiffany has to do is find her power. But she quickly learns that itÂ’s not all black cats and broomsticks. According to her witchy mentor Miss Tick, "Witches donÂ’t use magic unless they really have to...We do other things. A witch pays attention to everything thatÂ’s going on...A witch uses her head...A witch always has a piece of string!" Luckily, besides her trusty string, TiffanyÂ’s also got the Nac Mac Feegles, or the Wee Free Men on her side. Small, blue, and heavily tattooed, the Feegles love nothing more than a good fight except maybe a drop of strong drink! Tiffany, heavily armed with an iron skillet, the feisty Feegles, and a talking toad on loan from Miss Tick, is a formidable adversary. But the Queen has a few tricks of her own, most of them deadly. Tiffany and the Feegles might get more than they bargained for on the flip side of Faerie! Prolific fantasy author Terry Pratchett has served up another delicious helping of his famed Discworld fare. The not-quite-teen set will delight in the FeeglesÂ’ spicy, irreverent dialogue and TiffanyÂ’s salty determination. Novices to PratchettÂ’s prose will find much to like here, and quickly go back to devour the rest of his Discworld offerings. Scrumptiously recommended. (Ages 10 to 14)
--Jennifer Hubert
