Promotional Information

A second instalment in the life of the highly original Strega-Borgia family and their dungeon-dwelling pet beasts.

About the Author

Debi Gliori is the author and illustrator of many books for children, including the very popular Mr Bear series. She won the Children's Book Award picture book section, and was shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1997. Her backlist in Doubleday/Corgi includes TELL ME SOMETHING HAPPY BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP and THE VERY SMALL. PURE DEAD MAGIC, the start of a trilogy, was her first novel. The second part, PURE DEAD WICKED was published in April 2002. Debi lives in Scotland, near Edinburgh.

Reviews

"A wildly entertaining, over-the-top, exuberant brew of domestic upheaval, Strega-Borgia style. Gliori knows family interaction and she relates it with gusto, her skill as a storyteller characterised by her ability to take what her readers will know and wrap it up as something extraordinary" -- Lindsey Fraser Scotsman "A breezy combination of wild charicature, computer-savvy contemporary sensibility and lavatorial jokes that should appeal to nine to twelve year olds" The Sunday Times "Adopts a relentless narrative pace. There's only one tempo permitted - fast-forward ... Wonderful read-aloud material" TES "Terrific invention, magic, jokes and an excellent narrative style" -- Tony Bradman Daily Telegraph

Gr 4-7-Titus, 12; his sister Pandora, 10; and baby Damp are back in this sequel to Pure Dead Magic (Knopf, 2001). This time, their beloved ancestral home is under siege by an unscrupulous roofer and his real-estate developer friends. The Strega-Borgias are forced to move to the Auchenlochtermuchty Arms while the workman proceeds to divest their home of its roof tiles and deposit them in a nearby loch. In the end, but with much going on in between, StregaSchloss is saved, and the family has their home back. Gliori has created another fantasy romp, complete with computer-generated clones of Titus and Pandora, evil businessmen bent on developing suburban Scotland, and a dragon laying an egg. While the characters are stock, the story will make children roar with laughter. There is the prerequisite humor for this age group including a rather unclean yeti and baby Damp's preoccupation with flushing the mail down the toilet. For those who appreciated the first book, this installment will not disappoint.-Lynn Evarts, Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, WI Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

"A wildly entertaining, over-the-top, exuberant brew of domestic upheaval, Strega-Borgia style. Gliori knows family interaction and she relates it with gusto, her skill as a storyteller characterised by her ability to take what her readers will know and wrap it up as something extraordinary" -- Lindsey Fraser Scotsman "A breezy combination of wild charicature, computer-savvy contemporary sensibility and lavatorial jokes that should appeal to nine to twelve year olds" The Sunday Times "Adopts a relentless narrative pace. There's only one tempo permitted - fast-forward ... Wonderful read-aloud material" TES "Terrific invention, magic, jokes and an excellent narrative style" -- Tony Bradman Daily Telegraph