A Wizard in Love.

Hector, a retired wizard, contentedly lives alone in his neglected dark house, with only his equally dark cat, Poison, for company. When their peaceful existence is disturbed by a new neighbour, whose joyous singing invades the neighbourhood, Hector’s response is, “How hateful! This must be stopped.” He bakes an evil cake so potent that Poison temporarily turns into a fire-breathing dragon with just one taste. On the pretext of neighbourliness, Hector takes the cake and a bunch of flesh-eating flowers to the newcomer. He immediately falls head over heels with the singer, and his evil plan becomes history.

Originally published in French in 2007, Le Sorcier Amoureux was one of the finalists for the Governor General’s Literary Awards— Children’s Illustration (French Language); its images were cited for their fluidity and luminosity. Children and adults whose reactions I sought responded viscerally, with some loving the artwork while others felt the pictures to be frightening and dark. The pictures are certainly bold and reflective of the text. The artist portrays the opposing characters with contrasting degrees of darkness and light as befits their personalities and values. Similarly, as Hector and Poison respond to the warmth of the “charming Isobel” so there is a corresponding change in their appearance. The book’s dust jacket turns into a handy promotional poster.

While the story has a touch of traditional folklore about it, part of its charm is in its simplicity and resulting satisfying ending—although this reviewer wanted to know what happened to the evil cake, hoping that some other hapless victim would not eat it accidentally! Recommended.