Hocus and Pocus and the Spell for Home

One day in late October, a witch discovers a litter of puppies wandering alone outside. She recognizes that they have unique magical qualities, and, wanting to help them, she takes them to the “Shelter for Slightly Magical Pets”. Within days of arriving at the shelter, three of these magical pups, Double, Toil, and Trouble, each quickly find their forever homes. However Hocus, who was born first, and Pocus, who was born last, want to be adopted together.

To dissuade potential adopters from separating them, the two pups decide to use some of their magical mischief, such as “burping sparks” and “eating several adoption applications “. They are so successful that, when Jinx, the witch who rescued them, visits the shelter a few months later, she is surprised to see them still there. “You know, l would have bet the barn that you two would have homes by now. I would take you myself…but l already have three apprentices to keep track of.”

As Hocus and Pocus witness Jinx use her potion spell for a home to help a tortoise find his magical warlock, their determination to stay together only intensifies. To fulfill this dream Hocus gets an idea and tells her brother: “We follow her [Jinx] home and make sure a hair from each of us gets into one potion” (p.30) and then she promptly sneaks into the witch’s bag. Not wanting to be left behind, Pocus also climbs into the bag “with a nervous little shiver”.

Arriving at Jinx’s home, the mischievous duo begin their search for the potion room. Setting out in their search, Hocus and Pocus stumble upon all three of Jinx’s young apprentices, one by one. All the magic students mention their preferred pronouns to the pups upon introduction. Urgency then fills the pups to find the room as the last apprentice hurries to inform Jinx of the pups’ presence. Excitement ripples through the pups as they push open a door and are met by the sight of a huge black oak tree that fills the room. They see a ring of colourful spell potions bubbling in cauldrons at the base of the tree. Using their noses, Hocus and Pocus sniff out the cauldrons, trying to locate the one containing the potion they saw Jinx use at the shelter. They soon realize that “Jinx wasn’t just any witch, and her spells weren’t always labelled in ways that other people—or puppies —could understand.”

The pups’ zealous sniffing causes an explosion of magical mayhem to erupt, and the loud ruckus alerts Jinx and her apprentices. As Jinx opens the door to a room full of escaped spells, she exclaims, “What happened in here?” After Jinx and the apprentices team right the spells that were accidentally loosened by the pups, one of the apprentices informs Jinx that there were two dogs in the house. Looking about, Jinx spies the pups, and as she scoops them to return them to the shelter, Pocus watches the cauldron change colour behind Jinx. The dark blue colour told the puppies that they belonged with Jinx forever; however, she hadn’t noticed the changes. The next day, back at the shelter, Hocus and Pocus are informed by the owner that “there’s a witch here who wants to see puppies”. That witch turns out to be Jinx who declares that she will love them both “no matter how much mischief” they are”.

Hocus and Pocus and the Spell for Home is the debut first chapter book by A. R. Capetta.
Chapters are defined by sharp, clear large black font that is well spaced, making it easy for a reader to follow the narrative. Creative headings such as “What are apprentices?” (p.37) and
“Sneakery” (p.51) also provide added clues to the coming chapter.

Bold coloured and expressive graphics by Charlene Chua prove to be a great balance to the narrative. The illustrations complement and enhance the plot. Diversity and inclusion are an integral part of this story which is clearly demonstrated by the three young apprentices as they each introduce themselves to Hocus and Pocus and mention their preferred pronouns. “I’m Tam the warlock. My pronouns are they and them.”

Hocus and Pocus and the Spell for Home is an enjoyable story that successfully combines adventure, magic and diversity with loveable puppy charm, culminating in an great ending.