Tuesdays at the Castle

Celcie is the youngest of four children and daughter of the King Glower the Seventy-Ninth.  She lives in an enchanted castle with her family and on Tuesdays it seems that the castle decides to change and shift as it sees fit.  It will add extra hallways, change rooms, rearrange the floor plan, and if it does not like someone, it will make it known by shrinking rooms and locking doors.  The family must respect the castle and learn to understand it's judgement.

When Celcie's parents leave to attend her brother's graduation from a wizarding college, they are ambushed as part of a traitorous plot and declared dead.  Representatives from neighboring kingdoms arrive at the castle to pay their respects and diplomacy starts to strain as Rolf, Celcie's brother, is crowned king and more plots are set into motion.  Now, the children must use the help of the castle to protect their family and their home.

This is a delightful story.  Celcie is quite the hero.  As the youngest, she can be child-like, brave, sensible, and impulsive in turns.  She is the one that the castle loves best and her relationship with the castle is endearing.  The castle itself is a character all its own, and many readers will find themselves wishing that they could visit Castle Glower.  Rolf, the future king, is both a fine leader, and loving and silly brother, while Lilah is very concerned with manners but she is also a kind sister.

Readers will also be struck by the pranks that the children pull on the Council and their enemies.  Those pranks, both aided and unaided by the castle, sound like a good deal of fun, although hopefully readers will realize that these types of pranks are best left in books.

This is the first in a projected series, however, it stands perfectly on it's own.  This would make an excellent addition to any reader's choice award book list, as it is easily accessible for readers from grades 3 through 5, but the interest level could stretch it an extra year.  Plus, this is a lovely book for adult readers to read with their children, or if they are just looking for a fun adventure to help them feel young at heart.

Happy Reading!