Visit Starfell, a land where magic is bursting back into the world in unexpected, fantastic ways, but also in the odd and unremarkable – or so they first appear.

Willow Moss has magic like many members of her family, but she can’t speak to the dead like her mother, blow things up like her eldest sister, or move things with her mind like her middle sister. Willow’s magic is in the art of finding lost things, such as keys, a pair of glasses, a missing sock or, in one case, old Jeremiah Crotchet’s wooden teeth. It’s a helpful skill, but not very impressive.

But when an entire day, last Tuesday, if you’d like to know, disappears, the most powerful witch in the world turns up at Willow’s door asking for help. What else can an unexceptional witch do but grab her bag, a few supplies, and the monster from under the bed – Oswin the Kobold, who looks a lot like a tabby cat,but don’t let him hear you say that.

The text and dialogue are humorous and fun, with characters that jump off the page in a setting you won’t want to leave. Great for readers 8+.

Claire Atherfold is the children’s book buyer at Readings State Library.