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Cat Chant admired his elder sister Gwendolen. She was a witch.

-The opening lines of Charmed Life by Diana Wynne Jones

Love the Chrestomanci books. This is my second or third reread of this particular book and it was as enjoyable as the first time. To those curious about what the books are about, here's a summary by Diana Wynne Jones from inside the book:

There are thousands of worlds, all different from ours. Chrestomanci's world is the one next door to us, and the difference here is that magic is as common as music is with us. It is full of people working magic—warlocks, witches, thaumaturges, sorcerers, fakirs, conjurors, hexers, magicians, mages, shamans, diviners and many more—from the lowest Certified witch right up to the most powerful of enchanters. Enchanters are strange as well as powerful. Their magic is different and stronger and many of them have more than one life. Now, if someone did not control all these busy magic-users, ordinary people would have a horrible time and probably end up as slaves. So the government appoints the very strongest enchanter there is to make sure no one misuses magic. This enchanter has nine lives and is known as "the Chrestomanci. " You pronounce it KREST-OH-MAN-SEE. He has to have a strong personality as well as strong magic. Diana Wynne Jones

What THIS book is about, however, is what happens to Cat Chant and his sister Gwendolen after they become orphans, then end up in the care of Chrestomanci.

I started on The Pinhoe Egg immediately after. It's not the next one in the series, it's actually the most recent one, but it's the next one that focuses on Cat again. I like Cat. He's a charming little fellow with a mulish streak.

FUN DETAILS I have noticed while reading this book:

1. When their teacher yells at Cat, he swears by saying 'why the Black Gentleman'
2. America is called Atlantis and is ruled by Incas.
3. Either Gwendolen managed to find a graveyard, or the Chrestomanci grounds contain the bodies of: a possible murder victim, a possible murderer, and a former Duke of Buckingham.

Also, some great fanart of the book characters:

• Sketchy Chrestomanci
• Teenage Chrestomanci and his future wife
• Not-sketchy Chrestomanci
• Tacroy, Mordecai, Chrestomanci, and Cat Chant illustrations