(3) 4-6 Translated by Anthea Bell. Illustrated by F. J. Tripp. Friends Kasperl and Seppel pursue the infamous robber Hotzenplotz after he steals Kasperl's grandmother's musical coffee mill. The clumsy duo finds itself snared in the robber's den when plans go awry. All ends well with a fairy's aid. Though the silliness is old-fashioned, this folklore-inspired story, first published in Germany in 1962, has some kid-appeal. Black-and-white drawings add levity to the escapades.

Reviewer: Carolyn Shute

(2) 4-6 Translated by Anthea Bell. Originally published as The Satanic Mill, this is a foreboding tale, set in seventeenth-century Germany, of fourteen-year-old Krabat, newly apprenticed to a miller who is running a school of black magic. Once a year, one of the twelve apprentices dies under mysterious circumstances. The atmosphere is menacing, the combination of realistic events and eerie dream sequences extremely effective. Preussler's horror novel still has significant power.

Reviewer: Martha V. Parravano | Horn Book Magazine Issue: April, 1973; November, 2014