This was a fun kids lit read from the author of Fablehaven. While I didn't like it as much as Fablehaven, I thought the story was good and it provided the reader with things to think about without bashing them over the head preaching about how important things like trust and parents are. I like how it balanced the female and male characters and didn't stick to typical caricatures of good and evil. ( )

I got more than I bargained for in this book. While it is definitely a children's book, the writing was very good and there was a lot in the book for an adult as well.
The realization that this wasn't just another kid's book came about two chapters in when I began to feel very uncomfortable and debated on quitting the book entirely. There is a section where the children are being invited by what seems like a very nice person to run errands and such in. All of the normal rules are being followed, she doesn't just give them stuff, they have to earn their reward and there is nothing overtly wrong, but as an adult, you can tell something is.
I was amazed at the ability of the author to write a section where the children acted very realistically, but as an adult, you could see the problems and feel suspicious of a character. Usually when this happens in a book, it is because the main character is an idiot. Like in a horror movie when the entire audience is saying,"DON"T GO INTO THE MYSTERIOUS, DARK AND GLOOMY CELLAR!" and the character does anyway.
The brilliant thing about Mull's writing is that you don't feel the children are being stupid or willfully blind. That is the squirm factor, they are just being kids and the bad character is taking advantage of that very skillfully. That isn't really much of a spoiler because lots of other good things happen and the ending had a great twist.
So if you know a kid that likes suspense and a bit of action, this would be a great book, but if you are a grown-up, beware. ( )

This book was as interesting as Fablehaven, only a totally different twist. Involves a couple of kids, crazy magicians, and a lot of magic candy. Very well written and completely engaging from page 1. ( )

I read The Candy Shop Wars to my 4th grader. She did a book report on it and her class liked what she had to say so much her teacher has added it to his list of books he's reading to the class. The book was great. The excitement of the book took these kids from one adventure with magic candy to the next. It was a little scary in some parts, but just enough to want to be scared again. I only read a chapter a day to my daughter, but I had a hard time not reading ahead while she was at school. I didn't realize I would enjoy this book of magic and magicians and candy that makes you fly or that turns you into a differnt race as much as I did. I would recomend this book to older kids and adults both. The plot is very original and alot of fun. ( )

Melisa Sigurdson
EDCI 4120/5120
July 12, 2008

Mull, B. (2007). The candy shop war. Stevens Point, Wisconsin: Shadow Mountain.

Grade Levels: 6-10
Category: Fantasy
Read-Alouds: 18-27 (Trevor, Pigeon, Nate, and Summer meet ); 43-49 (Meeting Miss White); 78-84 (Breaking and entering, the first mission); 141-146 (Grave robbing, mission number two); 149-151 (Suspicion of Miss White); 177-181 (Miss White crosses the line); 243-248 (Turning the tables); 295-308 (Finding the right person to trust); 388-394 (Miss White loses more than the candy shop war)

Summary: Nate moves to a quiet California town where he meets Summer, Trevor, and Pigeon. They become fast friends, teaming up against the bullies that plague them. Soon they discover the new candy shop in town where the proprietor gives the foursome magic candy in return for their services. At first she only wants them to clean her shop, but her demands get more dangerous at every point. Finally, she crosses the line when she asks them to erase someone’s memory, and the children begin to try to find a way of stopping her. Miss White is a witch who has come to the town of Hanover to find the fountain of youth, which will increase her powers exponentially. However, when the children turn against her, she turns nasty, employing the aforementioned bullies to stop them. As the story escalates, a man named Mr. Stott, also a magician, also has the children working for him so he can get to the fountain. In the end, Miss White is on the brink of winning, as she drinks from the cup that contains the fountain of youth. Too late she discovers that the clean slate candy she had given to Nate in order to erase Mr. Stott’s memory has instead been used on her turning her into a twelve year old girl with no memory.

Themes: The largest theme that runs through this book is that of friendship. The four main characters are die hard friends, risking their lives for the others at all points throughout the story. The author also raises the question of what to do when friends make decisions that you don’t agree with. In addition to friendship, the candy shop war deals with the battle between good and evil, and being able to recognize between the two.

Discussion Questions:
1. Name three ways in which Summer, Trevor, Nate, and Pigeon supported each other.
2. What kind of magical candy did you like best? Why?
3. What kind of magical candy would you like to invent? What would it make you do?
4. Do you think the magicians in this story were the bad guys, or could they help themselves?
5. Do you think it would be ethical to give a criminal a clean slate candy? (Candy that would erase their memory)

Reader Response:
I loved this book! It was probably a little juvenile for what we have been discussing in class, but I think some really great discussion could come from it. The basic idea of good verses evil is enhanced by the children in the story not knowing who to trust, and sometimes making mistakes because of it. One way in which I was able to make a connection was through one of the candies Miss White distributed to the town that she simply called white fudge. Everyone became addicted to it and sought after it to the exclusion of everything else. I can see myself in this because I think I have a little bit of an addictive personality myself. The parents in the story didn’t notice any of the odd happenings with their children because of their addiction to this fudge. You could talk about this in conjunction with drug addiction and how it can alter personality. Over all it was a really great book, with a fantastic ending. Watch out Harry Potter!