A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch

After the mediocre The Worst Witch Strikes Again, author Jill Murphy completely redeems herself with A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch.

The impulsive and accident-prone self-styled “worst witch” Mildred Hubble returns for her second year at Miss Cackle’s Academy for Witches; she’s happily reunited with her pals, Maud Spellbody and Enid Nightshade and, unfortunately, with her nemesis, Ethel Hollow, an arrogant straight-A student. To tell more would be to ruin the surprise, but let’s just say that it’s not a spoiler to reveal that the titular bad spell is a literal one.

Reading it felt like flying through the pages. Finished in less than an hour, it was a chef's kiss! I love witches and their stories—I hope I'll be able to read the whole series as soon as possible. The illustrations are also excellent—it was eye-catching and fun. And oh—the tabby cat whom I absolutely adore!

The flaws outweigh the fun in this one. Maud should not have been put on a diet. Kidnapping is just plain wrong. Maud and Enid would not have disbelieved Mildred's report on Algernon. Mildred really should have learned by now to be less impulsive... she's like the boy who cried wolf and is always going to get blamed & never trusted. And why is she even in this miserable school? It's cold, damp, germy, w/ a form mistress who terrifies all the girls except "the form sneak" who is the 'pet' and it's not even a good fit for Mildred.

The books are short enough that I'll go on for awhile hoping something develops, but for goodness sake it just doesn't seem promising.

3.5 - This was a trip back to the past for me. Loved reading the whole series when I was younger and love just the same now.

The third book in the Worst Witch series. It is one of the older books being first published in 1982 but is still relevant and enjoyable for today's kids.

I love this book. I must read the next in the series.

mildred gose to cackles academy for witches.mildred is one of those people who always seem to be in trouble.