A review by abby_shupe
A Tale of Witchcraft... by Chris Colfer

adventurous challenging dark funny lighthearted sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

I can tell that Colfer chose a different route for this series, because in the previous Land of Stories series, he had the ability to pull from already present fairy tales and their life lessons. In a Tale of Magic series, those fairy tales haven’t taken place in the universe yet, so these books in order to still provide young children with life lessons, have their own big ideas and messages. Chris Colfer himself has stated that the hatred of the magical community in the fairy tale world represents the hatred of the LGBTQ community in our world. And that theme shines throughout this book and the series, and several lines in book two stood out to me when it came to this metaphor. Book two is 100% about mental health and the importance of it. From <(spoiler!)> the snow queen growing inside of madame weatherberry and how she never asked for help; <(spoiler over)> to Brystal’s struggle with her mental health and intrusive thoughts. Though this message was pushed very hard, it’s a message young children don’t get told enough so I liked the presence in this book. I didn’t love how disturbingly dark Brystal, a 14/15 year old girl’s thoughts were though. It’s outlined in the book that she has depression, and her inner thoughts from struggling with the illness are prominent in a lot of chapters. But they get so dark there’s clear metaphors for killing herself <(spoiler-when she contemplates surrendering to the Southern Kingdom)>,and suicidal tendencies. Also, a lot of deaths. the land of stories series can certainly be read by kids as young as 8, but i would recommend this series for mature children, 10+ but that may be because i can understand all metaphors, references, and comparisons that Colfer implements. I can compare the two series by saying the Land of Stories series is more an elementary school reading, whilst A Tale of Magic series is more of a middle school reading. Colfer said that book two is about Lucy, and that if he continues the series, he will eventually focus on an individual fairy council member in each book. I personally love this, and having already read A Tale of Sorcery, I thoroughly enjoyed the spotlight bring on Xanthous. I’m still impartial to the Land of Stories original series, and examining all of the life lessons from original fairy tales, but I also like the path colfer has taken with this triology. Book two is my least favorite out of the series just because it holds a theme of impeding doom, but leaves room for hope and motivation in book three. 
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