The second charming and magical chapter book in the series, with adorable protagonist pups and incidental nonbinary inclusion.
In this volume, sibling pups Hocus and Pocus help their human witch, Jinx, and her apprentices give out helpful potions around the neighborhood. Notably, the neighborhood includes both magical and nonmagical folks living in harmony, and the nonmagical neighbors offer Jinx pickled vegetables and knitted socks in return for her spells.
When they discover that Jade, the wizard next door, has a new pet dragon named Bye-Bye, Hocus is excited to make a new friend, but Pocus is scared of the fire-breathing beast. When Hocus visits Bye-Bye’s yard to make friends, however, Bye-Bye chases them off—and Hocus’s special magic helps her realize that the dragon is actually afraid of dogs.
Pocus then learns some words in dragon to try and communicate better (at the suggestion of nonbinary apprentice Tam). Hocus, meanwhile, uses a spell to turn temporarily into a dragon, thinking that will help her and the dragon become friends—but Pocus doesn’t realize that the second dragon now in the neighborhood is really his sister. Antics ensue when Jinx and Jade discover that both Hocus and Bye-Bye are missing—but (spoiler alert!) all ends well as pups and dragon eventually talk together and work things out.
Once again, the story is a breath of fresh air after too many chapter books with stiff dialog and/or weak plots. Author A. R. Capetta’s prose is delightful, while also gently offering insight about overcoming everyday fears and making new friends. There’s a clear dramatic arc, nice characterizations, and an engaging world of magical realism. Illustrator Charlene Chua makes Hocus and Pocus absolutely adorable (and their human characters are pretty fun, too).
Additionally, all of the human characters are introduced with their pronouns as if this was the most natural thing in the world (which it should be). And while there’s only one clearly queer character here (Tam), Jinx and Jade both give me queer vibes. There’s at least one more book planned in the series, however, so perhaps we’ll learn more about how they identify (or meet other queer characters) in the future. Regardless, this is a highly recommended title.
