I would imagine that this would give a young reader a great deal of enjoyment for a couple of evenings, but it is a book that is going to be reread time and time again. I read the book in a lazy couple of hours. There are some wonderful illustrations, all done by the author herself, which neatly break up the text without giving the feeling that they're padding it out. You get characters you can really warm to, that you can believe in. It's elegant, correct and a pleasure to read - aloud or to yourself. You get writing that you're proud to give to your children. With Jill Murphy you don't just get a good story. It's a splendid story with only Mildred's bravery saving the day - it would be a very hard heart that didn't warm to her. Underlying all this are the normal schoolgirl friendships and rivalries, with the baddies always getting their comeuppance. Lessons revolve around spells and potions and I wasn't at all surprised to encounter a talking toad. There's the school atmosphere with which the readers will be familiar, but what a difference! There are lantern monitors and cats that enjoy jumping onto speeding broomsticks. Normally I don't like fantasy - but this all seems so plausible! There's fantasy as you see Mildred dressed as a witch but with Doc Martens, flying on her broomstick, complete with all her luggage.

The series will probably appeal to girls rather than boys, as the human cast list is exclusively female, but it has all the elements that make a good book. My grandchildren cut their teeth (sometimes literally) on her books for younger children and the Worst Witch series, first published in 1974, is a timeless classic. When she gets to school it all starts to go wrong, as Ethel steals her project and there are problems with a tortoise who doesn't like being called Speedy and a ride in a broomstick in near-hurricane conditions. She's even pleasantly surprised when her arch enemy, Ethel Hallow, drops in (from her broomstick) as Mildred rescues her cat from a tree. She's worked on the most wonderful project over the holidays and she's certain that everyone is going to be impressed.

Mildred Hubble isn't usually quite so keen to go back to Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches on the first day of term, but today it's different.

It's a school-based adventure story with illustrations by the author. Summary: The fifth book in The Worst Witch series will delight any early reader although it's probably more for girls than boys.

Author of the worst witch