Advertisement

WyndMagic is the story of Katie, a young teen from the American town of Edmundston. Wrapped up in her family's problems, particularly that of her father's alcoholism, Katie wishes to change her situation. She is more than just any young woman, however. Katie is the Apprentice WyndCaller, one of a few destined to be powerful and influential wizards. To fix her problems, Katie desperately wants to use more of her magic. She dreams of travelling back to Angliocch, a parallel world, and the home of her teacher, the WyndCaller named Myrdd.

Katie also has to cope with Nathan, her close friend who just recently began to see her as an attractive young woman. Worse, Nathan is the apprentice TruthSinger; he usually knows exactly what she's thinking unless Katie works hard to hide her thoughts.

When the story begins, summer has lasted far too long. Katie and Nathan learn why: the extensive magical activity of their previous trip to Angliocch caused much strife, and now WyldMagic is traversing the time streams, disrupting the natural balance. Meanwhile, Katie's father's alcoholism gets worse and he perceives strange beings in the woods around their house.

Then, in an effort to magically balance the seasons, Katie brings forth from Angliocch one of her and Nathan's worst enemies. After a confrontation with this being, Katie uses her magic again and transports Nathan, herself, and even her father to Angliocch.

WyndMagic starts where the previous novel, TruthSinger leaves off, though if you have not read the first book (which I have not) Haworth-Attard fills in enough information to keep readers well grounded in the present novel.

From an adult perspective, the story is rather simple. Several places lacked specific description and I was left wanting to know exactly what a character had done. This probably works fine for young teens, however. More importantly, the characters are believable and have clear motivations for their actions. WyndMagic is, I believe, a story to which young teens can relate. It is entertaining and illustrates the value of friendship, family, and courage.

Though I think we would all like to have a perfect childhood, most of us grow up with difficulties of some sort, either getting picked on in school, dealing with parental problems, or both. Some of us fantasize about having a more important role in the world, of having a great talent that allows us to help others, and to feel special.

I hope that children who read this book come away realizing that with or without any particular talent, they are each special and by doing what is right in any situation, they can make a difference. That is the lesson Katie learns, and that all people should learn.