by Natasha Lowe
When Cat graduated from Ruthersfield with respectable grades in most of her classes (although she did have to sit her potions exam three times before passing), and maximum honors in broomstick flying, she knew exactly what she wanted to do.
“I’m joining the Frequent Flyers,” Cat told her parents, much to their pride and dismay. The Frequent Flyers were a group of witches trained to perform dangerous rescue missions, plucking people out of high-rise burning buildings or searching for survivors from boat accidents when the sea was too rough for the coast guards. They took their broomsticks to places it was impossible to reach otherwise and were known for their courage and bravery.
“I’m so proud of you!” Tristram said, his eyes a little damp with tears.
Poppy nodded in agreement, but she couldn’t help saying, “Are you quite sure you want to be a Frequent Flyer, Cat? You’re welcome to stay here and help out at the bakery.”
“Absolutely, definitely not,” Cat replied. “Just because I was born in a bakery doesn’t mean I want to work in one.” And, putting on her glare reflective, tinted flying goggles, she decided to take her graduation present—the streamlined 140 Speed Demon—up for a test spin. For old times’ sake, Cat carried the broomstick up to her bedroom and climbed out onto the roof. She stood for a moment looking over the canal to the Ribbald Valley beyond. Then, with a cry of delight, Cat Campbell leapt off the bakery and launched herself into the air!
Excerpts from the Late Bloomer’s Guide to Magic
by
Francesca Fenwick
* * *
Tips for the Late Bloomer
Congratulations on inheriting the magic gene! Witchcraft is a challenging profession, but it can also be extremely rewarding, even for the Late Bloomer. Below are a few pointers that I hope any Late Bloomers out there might find useful.
1. Believing in yourself and your magic is half the battle.
2. Pay attention to your breathing when you are mixing potions. Magical ingredients are sensitive to vibrations and can react badly with nervous energy.
3. Use a calm, deep voice when chanting your spells.
4. A positive attitude is just as important as being skillful with your wand.
5. Try not to give up if your spells don’t work correctly the first time. It can take patience and a few tries to get the magic right.
6. Never compare your success to that of other witches. Be your own best self.
7. Try not to worry too much about the future. If you spend all your time fretting about your career as a witch (whether you’ll ever be good enough, et cetera . . .), you’ll miss out on all the wonderful magical moments going on right now!
8. Be proud of your Late Bloomer status. (If you are interested in joining the Society for Late Bloomers, please feel free to drop me a line. We are a small but growing organization.)
9. Most important of all—have fun with your magic. Keep your sense of humor at all times, and remember that laughter helps keep spells light and airy, which all good magic needs.
10. And finally, let us not forget what the great witch Annabelle Lewis said when she defeated the forces of evil: “Nem zentar topello”—Don’t let fear stand in your way.
Simple Spells for the Late Bloomer
All these beginner spells are quite easy to control and are a good place for the novice witch to start. Ask an adult for permission and/or to help you to set up and use kitchen equipment, crack eggs, cut with knives, or take pans in and out of the oven, etc.
Raising Your Spirits Cake
Makes 1 cake or 12 cupcakes
When you are full of the grumps and life feels challenging, make this delicious, light-as-air cake to lift your spirits. Be careful with your measurements and do not exceed 1 teaspoon of dragon’s breath; otherwise the results may not be quite what you expected.
Don’t worry if you can’t track down any dragon’s breath. Your cake will be just as delicious without it, and it should still raise your spirits if you say the chanting spell with an extra degree of enthusiasm.
~ INGREDIENTS ~
* * *
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
4 ounces (just over 3/4 cup) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon condensed dragon’s breath. (If you don’t have any dragon’s breath, feel free to substitute 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. A tiny drop of red food coloring will give the cake an authentic look because dragon’s breath tints the batter a lovely pale pink.)
~ METHOD ~
* * *
1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.
2. Mix everything together in a food processor. Or use an electric beater to mix the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time and beat well after each addition. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together in a separate bowl and then mix into the batter until just blended. Add the milk and dragon’s breath (or vanilla and food coloring if using).
3. Now hold a wooden (not metal) spoon in your left hand. Making sure you start in a clockwise direction, begin stirring the batter and in a clear, cheerful voice, chant the following spell:
Sunshine, moonbeams, light as air
Stir three times round without a care.
Warm winds, laughter, spirits rise
Stir back three times, counterclockwise.
4. Pour into a greased 7-inch cake pan or make as cupcakes. Bake cake for about 20 minutes (about 15 for cupcakes), until risen and springy to the touch. Cool on a wire rack.
5. If you like you can make a simple frosting for your cake by beating together 1 stick of softened butter, 11/4 cups of confectioners’ sugar, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract. You will feel bubbles of happiness rising up inside you as you eat!
Amazing Dreams
Bath Powder
Makes enough for several magical soaks
A long soak in this magical milky bath will give you amazing dreams. If you don’t have any moon dust to add, don’t worry. Just make sure you use a silky, sleepy voice when you say the chanting spell and you may still have wonderful dreams. A relaxing, sweet-scented bath is most certainly guaranteed.
~ INGREDIENTS ~
* * *
1/2 cup powdered milk
1/4 cup cornstarch
Around 10 drops of lavender essential oil (less or more depending on how lavender scented you like it)
3 pinches moon dust
~ METHOD~
* * *
1. Mix all the ingredients together with your wand. Stir in a clockwise direction and say the following chanting spell:
A slice of moon
A dash of wind
A star to wish upon
A magic world to fill your dreams
And soon the night is gone.
Weave enchantments through this spell
And have amazing dreams to tell.
2. Keep your dream powder in a pretty sealed jar. Sprinkle a spoonful or two into warm running water for a magical bath experience.
Shortbread Giggle Bars
Makes about 35 Giggle Bars
Share this recipe with anyone in need of a good laugh. Giggling is not only encouraged but is necessary when you say the spell! These Giggle Bars may not produce quite such raucous chuckling without adding the pixie laugh to the batter, but they should certainly bring a smile to the face of the eater.
~ INGREDIENTS~
* * *
11/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
11/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) butter
A pixie laugh (The laugh of a pixie is very infectious, so be prepared to start giggling as soon as you let the laugh out of the bag. Feel free to substitute 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract if you can’t track down any pixi
e laughs.)
~ METHOD ~
* * *
1. Preheat oven to 325° F.
2. Mix all the ingredients together in a food processor and pinch off a taste to make sure it’s delicious. Now wave your wand over the dough and, with as much giggling as you can manage, chant the following spell:
Silly jokes and lime green hair
Teachers in their underwear.
Random words at random times
Funny songs and silly rhymes.
Stir the pixie laugh in well
And giggle while you say this spell!
3. Press the mixture into a 9 x 13 pan until it is in a thin, even layer. Score lightly into bars with a knife. Poke the dough all over with the prongs of a fork in a traditional shortbread design. (Shortbread was invented by Scottish pixies around the twelfth century.)
4. Bake for about 45 to 55 minutes, until pale golden. When the Giggle Bars come out of the oven, cut right through along the score lines and cool in pan on a wire rack. The shortbread will crisp as it cools. Sprinkle sugar over the bars and store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Songbird Lemonade
Makes 3 generous glasses of lemonade
Amaze and delight your friends, and sing like a nightingale after drinking this lemonade. You will hit the high notes, warble like an opera singer, and have flowers thrown at your feet. Nightingale calls are a specialty item. They can sometimes be ordered from The Witches’ Supply Catalogue, but if you can’t get hold of one, don’t worry—just make the lemonade without it. By chanting the spell with a little extra chirpiness, you should still notice a difference in your singing voice, and of course, the lemonade will be just as delicious.
~ INGREDIENTS~
* * *
1/2 cup sugar (or a little less, depending on how sweet you like your lemonade)
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (you will need to squeeze about 3 to 4 lemons depending on size and juiciness)
2 cups cold seltzer water
The call of a nightingale (Be careful when taking out of the box. Nightingale calls have a habit of flying off if you are slow to grab them. Catch the call quickly as it comes out of the box and drop straight into the lemonade.)
~ METHOD ~
* * *
1. Heat the sugar and water together in a small saucepan until the sugar is dissolved completely. Take off the stove.
2. Put the sugar water into a pitcher. Add 1/2 cup of lemon juice. Then stir in 2 cups of seltzer water. Now, quickly add your nightingale call and wave your wand over the jug from right to left. In your best spell-chanting voice, sing:
Lemons and sugar and sparkling noise
Singing is one of life’s marvelous joys.
The call of a cuckoo, the coo of a dove
The whistle of starlings from high up above.
A mocking jay sings with delight all day long
But the sweetest of all is the nightingale’s song.
So mix in a melody, rhythm, and voice
Opera or rock and roll, make it your choice.
Blend it together and what have we made?
A musical potion of sweet lemonade.
3. Chill for 30 minutes. Pour into glasses and enjoy! You can serve this with ice or lemon slices if you would like. Remember to clink glasses and, before drinking, say the witches’ toast to good health, “Daggles up!”
Courage Potion
Makes 2 cups of courage potion
When life feels overwhelming and a little scary (which is often the case for the Late Bloomer), this potion will give you the boost of courage you need. Drink a glass before school or broomstick flying or whatever else makes your insides quiver. If you have trouble finding powdered griffin’s tooth to add to the potion, don’t worry. This ingredient is extremely rare. Just make sure your voice doesn’t quiver as you say the spell and there will still be plenty of courage in your potion.
~ INGREDIENTS ~
* * *
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt, or be courageous and try another flavor
3/4 cup fresh or frozen fruit (Choose whatever kind you like.)
1/2 cup orange juice (Feel free to take control of your potion and pick a different juice.)
1/4 cup ice cubes
1 teaspoon powdered griffin’s tooth
~ METHOD ~
* * *
1. Whiz all the ingredients together in a blender. Then wave your wand over the potion and using a calm, clear voice, say the following chanting spell:
Courage is for lions
Courage is for kings
Courage is for all of us, scared of many things.
We only need a little, a pinch to see us through
So courage, courage, step right up
Infuse our magic brew.
2. Pour into a glass and enjoy. You should feel yourself getting braver as you drink!
Friendship Repair
Hot Chocolate
Makes 2 mugs of hot chocolate
This is the perfect brew for patching up quarrels and making friends again after an argument. Share a mug with the person you have been fighting with and watch those angry feelings melt away. Feel free to substitute regular whole milk if you don’t have access to unicorn milk. The richer and creamier the milk, the better the hot chocolate will taste.
~ INGREDIENTS ~
* * *
2 cups unicorn milk (or regular whole milk)
1/2 cup real chocolate chips
Fun stuff (Feel free to impress your friends by adding a drop of peppermint or vanilla extract, and if you really want to make them swoon, top with a cloud of whipped cream.)
~ METHOD ~
* * *
1. Warm the milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Mix in chocolate chips and stir or whisk until melted. Turn off the heat and wave your wand over the pan. In your warmest, friendliest voice, chant the following spell:
A hug, hello, and friendly wink
Stir all these things into this drink.
Add smiles and laughs, a listening ear
To help your quarrel disappear.
So share a cup with friend or foe
And watch your friendship mend and grow.
2. Pour hot chocolate into mugs. Add the fun stuff if you want to, and make sure you clink cups with your friend before drinking, and say the witches’ toast to good health, “Daggles up!”
Acknowledgments
MY NAME MAY BE ON the cover of this book, but I could not have written it without the help and support of a great many people, starting with my wonderful agent, Ann Tobias. Once again she worked with me through endless rounds of revisions, and Cat would not be the book it is today without her excellent guidance and help—thank you, thank you!
A huge thank-you to my dream editor, Paula Wiseman, for helping me breathe magic into Cat, and to everyone at Simon & Schuster who worked so hard on this book, especially Chloë Foglia, for her fabulous cover design.
Thank you to the amazingly talented Sebastien Mesnard, for bringing Cat to life. He captured her perfectly in his gorgeous illustration, and I feel so lucky to have his artwork on my cover!
Where would I be without the sharp eagle eyes of Jane Gilbert Keith, who picks up things no one else ever notices and brainstorms ideas with me over countless cups of tea. I can’t forget to mention Annalie Gilbert Keith and Juliette Lowe, who gave me excellent feedback from a kid’s point of view.
Thank you to everyone who insisted I write a sequel to Poppy, and to my son Ben for giving me the brilliant idea! Thank you to my family and friends, for the constant encouragement and daily laughter. And to Rachel Roberts, for making sure all my spells worked correctly. I also want to say a special thank-you to the entire Lowe clan. I couldn’t ask for a more wonderful bunch of in-laws!
I am so lucky to have such supportive parents, who read countless drafts of Cat and listened to me ramble away for hours on the telephone while I worked through plot ideas.
And lastly, thank you t
o my husband, Jon, for doing all the yucky chores and ferrying the kids about so that I could have time to write! And to Sebastian, Oliver, Ben, and Juliette—you inspire me to be more courageous every day.
Natasha Lowe knew as a child that she wanted to be either a writer, an adventurer, or a fancy teashop owner. So she did a little bit of everything, traveling from her native London to America, where she ran the Tea House bed-and-breakfast and wowed guests with her grandmother’s shortbread recipe. Natasha Lowe’s charming debut novel, The Power of Poppy Pendle, called “a sweet story about true friendship” by School Library Journal, told the story of a little witch who wanted to be a baker, and it wasn’t long before Natasha decided she wanted to tell the story of Poppy’s daughter in The Courage of Cat Campbell. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and four children. You can visit her at NatashaLowe.com. (Hint: there are more yummy teatime recipes there!)
A Paula Wiseman Book
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers
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