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Mez's Magic



Mez’s Magic
By Eliot Schrefer
HarperCollins Publishers, 2018. 357 p.

This is the first book in a new series called Lost Rainforest. In it Mez, who is a panther twin, is different from all the other panthers in her family. She can stay awake during daylight hours. (In this world the nocturnal animals can’t wake up during the day and the daylight animals cannot wake up at night.) But Mez can be awake anytime. Mez meets a green boa constrictor that tells her there are other animals that can be awake when they aren’t supposed to—and they all have magic. This magic needs to be used to save Caldera from the evil Ant Queen who is about to break free from her long imprisonment.

Readers who love animal stories full of magic and adventure (think fans of the Redwall or Warriors series) will enjoy this book. The jungle setting provides a great assortment of various animals (since most animal species tend to live in jungles) to be introduced in this series. Also, there will be many talking points that might resonate with current events such as the need for different animal species to overcome their prejudices of each other to work together to save the world. All in all, this is another good animal fantasy book for readers who like that sort of thing.

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