Book Review: Phyllo Cane and the Magical Menagerie, Phyllo Cane Book 2, Sharn W. Hutton
Shared Reading: Phyllo Cane and the Magical Menagerie, Phyllo Cane Book 2, Sharn W. Hutton
Blog Tour September 9, 2022
Phyllo Cane of the Cane family confectioners has demonstrated that he is NOT a very good confectioner. The circus ringmaster has set out to determine what his place in the circus should be. If a place cannot be found for him, Phyllo will be thrown out of the magical circus and forced to find his way in the world. Likely his family would go with him, meaning they too would suffer for his shortcomings. Phyllo will not let that happen.
In the first book, Phyllo tried his hand with the acrobats on the trapeze. Although he somehow inadvertently saved the circus, he also established that he was not a very good acrobat. He was good enough to do some very basic tricks but he would never be a high flying aerialist. So the next step in his apprentice journey was the magical menagerie.
There is a problem, though. The menagerie can only support one apprentice, and there is already someone in the role. The ringmaster makes his decision: the two shall compete for the one spot. If Phyllo wins, the young girl will be cast out of the circus.
Part of the reason the menagerie is struggling is that their star attraction, a dragon, is grieving the loss of her mate. Grieving dragons are not very entertaining. So the tamer has decided to find a new mate. Dragons are extremely rare, though, and very hard to capture. She will need help to find a dragon and bring it home–and Phyllo’s apprenticeship takes on unanticipated levels of difficulty.
Phyllo Cane and the Magical Menagerie is the second installment of a fun series that seems to be best suited to middle-grade readers. The plot is fairly basic and the language is accessible without being condescending. This is not a complicated read. It is an escape into a dream many young people have: join the circus and be part of the adventure.
My mother was an exceptionally wise person. When I was a kid, I disparaged my younger sibling’s fondness for comic books. She pulled me aside and asked a simple question: Is it better that he is reading comic books or would it be better if he wasn’t reading anything? Phyllo Cane may not be the next great children’s classic. But it is appealing, delightful, and will certainly attract its own readership. An unread book does no one any good. This is a book that will be read and enjoyed.
Our thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things for our copy of Phyllo Cane and the Magical Menagerie, given so we could participate in this blog tour. The opinions here are solely those of Scintilla. For other perspectives on this book, check out the other bloggers on this tour.
Book Review: Phyllo Cane and the Magical Menagerie, Phyllo Cane Book 2, Sharn W. Hutton