Under My Hat: Tales from the Cauldron

Gr 9 Up—This collection of short stories has one common theme: witches. Good, evil, male, female, old, and young-these magical beings and tales of their exploits are all included. The anthology starts and ends with the best of the bunch, kicking off with Diane Peterfreund's "Stray Magic," which tells of a stray dog rescued by a shelter worker that begins to communicate with her and pleads for help finding her master (a wizard to whom the Labrador is the "familiar"). The final story is Margo Lanagan's "Crow and Caper, Caper and Crow," another gem detailing Pen, an aging witch, embarking on a journey across the sea to bless her brand-new baby granddaughter-but the clever witch is in for a surprise when she lays eyes on the new addition. Peter S. Beagle's "Great-Grandmother in the Cellar" assaults readers much like the protagonist's great-grandmother claws her way out of the dirt in the wine cellar where her bones have been buried for years. Yet, great-grandmother is the good witch in this spooky tale. Another standout is Ellen Klages's "The Education of a Witch," about a young girl's growing fascination with witches. It includes the most memorable scene in the book. As supernatural-themed stories are extremely popular and good short-story collections are hard to find, this one is an excellent addition. Though a few of the selections are wordy and not particularly compelling, the great ones more than make up for them.Tara Kehoe, Plainsboro Public Library, NJ