The Sorcerer's Academy
Given the career of an English boy named Harry, the creation of an American school for magic-workers was inevitable. Not inevitable was that the place be a fount of intelligent, if sometimes lightweight, entertainment. Editor Little's judgment helps make it such, however, as do folklorist Josepha Sherman's two contributions, which open and close the collection, and the comprehensive folkloric expertise she displays. The 13 other contributors range from veterans like Robert Sheckley, with his humorous "A Salty Situation" to relative newcomers like Bill McCay with "Familiarity Breeds Contempt." Probably the darkest and most powerful story is Michelle West's "Diary," about a girl with no memory, though Diane Stuckart's "Snake in the Grass" definitely has bite. Despite the many authors, the book's three continuing characters--New Yorker Janice Redding; Barry Silverhorse, whose Navajo heritage forbids the use of magic; and nerdy Matt Johnson--are appealing enough to sustain not just this book but probably a sequel or two.Roland GreenCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved