I USED TO KNOW DIANE DUANE back in the old days of the CompuServe science fiction forum, and I got her book So You Want to Be a Wizard, (a sort of proto-Harry Potter) for the Insta-Daughter. But the Insta-Daughter has been reading Jane Eyre, so I started reading Wizard myself. It’s as good as I expected.

UPDATE: Reader Heather Chambers emails:

I loved her entire young wizard series. My son, now 18 yrs old, still enjoys re-reading them. – We are taking him off to UC San Diego this weekend to begin his freshman year. If he doesn’t take them with him, I guarentee he will reread each of them over the 1 month Christmas break. (Sleep is somewhat optional at 18). Each of us read at least 5 books a week. I like the fact that the kids accept consequences for their actions and recognize the profound implications for others. Excellent introduction to philosophy and ethics for teens. Congrats on your niece! Terry Pratchett has a Disc World series. Some of them are written for kids and are exceptional as well. Wee Free Men and its sequel Hat Full of Sky – same theme of choosing to fight evil and to protect others without being preachy or syrupy.

I haven’t read those, but I’ll check them out.