The Missing Magic

In this featherlight launch to the B Magical series, B (short for Beatrix) is a likable witch—basically a preteen version of Sabrina—with a problem. She's the only 11-year-old in the Magical Rhyming Society who can't yet induce magic via rhymed couplets. Adding to her anxiety is the upcoming class spelling bee, the winner of which will clinch tickets to a concert. Though B is a crackerjack speller, she's terrified of speaking in public ("If only she had her magic and could work a spell to eliminate stage fright"). When the concert tickets disappear, B is determined to retrieve them. The author plays on both meanings of "spell" as B realizes that the key to her magic is spelling, rather than rhyming, words. Her inadvertent magical charms before this discovery (and her intentional ones afterward) contribute to the book's lightly comedic tone. The characters are generic and the plotting predictable (save for a humorous spelling bee–related twist), but struggling readers may find it helpful for building confidence. B spells on in The Trouble with Secrets, published simultaneously. Ages 8–12. (Jan.)