Heeeeeelllllllo readers, hope you’re welll! I was recently writing a Top Ten Tuesday post and I was asked to name books that had made me a reader; I was trying to think of books to include and this one sprung to mind! So I thought to my little self I would write a review of this because it’s a book I UTTERLY LOVED as a new reader. So enjoy!

Welcome to the Wonderful World of Hypnotism

Molly Moon is no ordinary orphan. When she finds a mysterious old book on hypnotism, she discovers she can make people do whatever she wants. But a sinister stranger is watching her every move and he’ll do anything to steal her hypnotic secret…

So if you haven’t read this book it follows the life of the misunderstood and incredibly awkward orphan Molly. Living in the orphanage (named Hardwick House) with the horrible Miss Adderstone, the worst thing happens when Molly’s best friend is adopted and moves to New York City.  However, one special day Molly finds a mysterious old book on hypnotism and from then she discovers she has incredible powers of hypnosis. Molly, being the little nightmare she is travels to NY City to become a Broadway Superstar. We

So did I enjoy this? HELL YES. Firstly Molly is a really brilliantly written character; at times she’s a little crazy, a little difficult and she can be right diva but oh my is she wonderful to read about. The way she speaks and the way she is portrayed you can’t but root for the orphan who was constantly bullied and is just trying to achieve her dreams. I also adored Petula, the dog, her and Molly have a real connection and it leads to lots of funny and interesting stories that help to propel the book along.

In terms of plot, there are lots of ups and downs. We see Molly really playing with her powers – most so with the fact she becomes a broadway star and yet she cannot sing a not. I loved that we see her learning as she continues her reign to stardom and how it affects her; she goes from a very lonely girl to one that struggles with the persona she creates for herself. The author does this in a very clever way; it’s sustained throughout the book rather than Molly suddenly having a lightbulb moment and discovering actually she’s been a bit of a pain and caused quite a bit of disruption along the way. We see Molly and Rocky later in the book being forced to use their hypnotism skills to rob a man and it adds quite a lot of action and adversity to the book which helped to make it more exciting.

One of the only wobbles I had with this was the beginning; although the book is awesome, it is soooooo slow to begin with and only really picks up pace after Molly leaves the orphanage. I remember at the time, for me, the descriptions were so good that I knew I had to continue but I think some readers might struggle with the slow pace. In terms of the age range, I’m definitely going to read this again soon and I think readers of my age would really enjoy it – but in terms of the age range it’s supposed to be for I think ages 8-13 maybe. The writing style is easy-going but there’s enough action and also humour to keep the readers attention.

 So, is this worth a read? Definitely! It’s a book that can be used for lots of different readers; whether you’re reading to a child or you’re an older reader that wants a change of scenery. I think sometimes it’s really important to read different books from different genres and different ages. I think sometimes you need something a little fun and silly and I think this is the perfect book for that. In terms of the positives it’s really well written, the characters are brilliant built, and there’s enough to interest a reader throughout. Thumbs up from Lizzo.

Linnnnks

Amazon

Goodreads