THE WIZARD IN THE WOODS

Ben-Muzzy, inept apprentice wizard, is hopelessly tangled up by the spell-making words that the Grand High Wizard forces into his head. During an exam to ensure his qualifications as first- class junior wizard, he accidentally sends himself into an ordinary landscape and the care of twins Joel and Gemma. Trying to return him to his own land, all three end up in a strange place that grants visitors three wishes, and then in a country of giants and ogres. Stumbling across a witches' meeting, the wanderers filch a flying broomstick to take them all home. Ure's story—impelled more by high spirits and razzle-dazzle effects than by its arbitrary plot—is as random as the results of Ben- Muzzy's bungled spells. Still, readers who appreciate the loopholes that make magic so difficult may find that humor carries the day, helped by Anstey's comic b&w spot illustrations. (Fiction. 8-10)