After reading Reflections – On the Magic of Writing, I told myself and everyone who reads this (and my IG) that I want to read more Diana Wynne Jones (DWJ). Well, someone told me they loved the Chrestomanci series and since Witch Week, the third book in the series is on my TBR list, I decided to read Charmed Life, which is the first book in the series.

To be very honest, I was quite worried that I would have difficulty reading this book, since DWJ has mentioned that while children have no problem following her stories, adults sometimes do. Thankfully, this was not an issue and I was able to quickly settle in and enjoy the story of Cat.

Cat is a magic-less boy who has a very talented older sister, Gwendolyn. Gwendolyn is a witch, and she’s so good that the Chrestomanci, who seems to be a very important man, asks the two of them to move in with him. However, Gwendolyn feels slighted by the fact that she’s treated ordinarily and grows more and more cruel, giving Cat more and more stress as he starts to settle into his new home.

A very large portion of this book revolves around a problem that I normally get quite annoyed by. However, because DWJ has done such a great job describing Cat and his reliance on his sister, no matter how awful she may be, I understood why Cat behaved the way he does. In fact, the adults in the book, who seem to be very sensible people, actually named this problem and that made me feel like despite the magic, Cat’s world is a very sensible one.

Speaking of sensible, I really like that the adults here are sensible. It’s not about children solving problems that somehow no one else can solve, but about children dealing with problems that are big for them. That’s how Chrestomanci and his wife, Millie, can be so sensible and likeable (and also flamboyant, for Chrestomanci) without Cat’s problems diminishing in importance to him. As a character, I also found Cat to be sympathetic, given his loyal nature and naturally kind heart.

Honestly, this was such a fun introduction to the world of Chrestomanci! I was going to read the second book next, but I googled (I know I shouldn’t but spoilers just generally aren’t problems for me) and it seems like the books can be read out of order so I’ll be starting oon Withc Week next – that should be really fun.