Wizard's Hall by Jane Yolen, 133 pages

I'm a fan of Jane Yolen so when I read a review of this book on Unshelved's Friday book reviews, I was intrigued. Henry is a small, smudgy boy, who doesn't seem to have any real talent for magic. But when the Wizard's Hall is threatened by the beast of a dark wizard, Henry, also known as Thornmallow because he's prickly on the outside and squishy within, realizes that all he can do is try his best to save his school and new friends.

I'm surprised this book hasn't enjoyed a new fan base because it reminds me a lot of Harry Potter. I really wish Yolen had developed it into a longer book, this was more like a novella. I'm pretty sure Rowling must have read this book and gotten some of her ideas from it. For fans of Harry Potter going through withdrawal this is a nice little treat.