THE POWER OF FIVE (W.I.T.C.H. #1)

THE POWER OF FIVE (W.I.T.C.H. #1)
Adapted by Elizabeth Lenhard
158 pages
ISBN: 0-7868-5257-7
Volo
2004
$ 4.99 Paperback
Children’s Book

Being the new kid in a new school in a new community causes Taranee to be apprehensive about the Sheffield Institute. Since when is a school called an institute?

Finding another new student who also feels lost immediately creates a bond between Will and Taranee.

As Will and Taranee discover new friends they also discover new abilities within a group of five girls. The girls call themselves W.I.T.C.H., which are the first initials of their names, Will, Irma, Taranee, Cornelia, and Hay Lin. Since their families are not aware of the developing powers, an immediate bond is made between the girls. Elyon, a close friend, is on the outskirts of the group while being friends with all the girls.

Being in seventh-grade also requires the worries of what to wear and the crushes on boy, as well as dealing with the teachers and the principal, Mrs. Knickerbocker, who has a memorable hair-style. With the bothersome creepy boys of Uriah, Nigel, Laurant, and Kurt, the girls learn of the class hierarchy of the early teen years with who a “Sheffield Infielders”, as opposed to the “Outfielders”. Also mentioned are the invisible teens which are called the “Snufilupigi”.

The girls have powers to control the natural elements of air, water, fire, earth, and the “Heart of Candracar” This is the battle of good against evil. The girls are to protect the Veil. “Only this quickly thinning Veil separated evil – which had been exiled to the world of Metamoor – from good, which existed on earth.” The Veil between the good and evil weakens with the change of the millennium so in this first book, the girls are discovering their powers and their newly bonded friendships. Also, the evil desire of Lord Cedric and Varthik are introduced to balance the relationships.

With the guidance of Hay Lin’s grandmother and the bond of similar dreams W.I.T.C.H. proves to be an adventure that will interest many girls in their early teens. Also, the thought of betrayal lurks in the future which should continually hold the reader’s attention for books to come.

Supposedly these books have been adapted for an American audience from a European set of books. Each book includes comic illustrations in both the beginning and the end.

I personally want Irma’s power of changing the color of her wardrobe and Cornelia’s power of cleaning her room.

This is an appealing series for girls that are soon to be teens or in their early teen-aged years.