Children's Book Review: The Big Shrink (Upside-Down Magic #6) by Sarah Mlynowski

By Jennifer Hancock | Central Library

The Upside-Down Magic series immediately made me think of my daughter because the main character, Nory, likes to change into a dritten (part dragon, part kitten). In this world of magic, what happens when your own magic isn’t like everyone else’s? You are labeled as upside-down magic and put into a “special” class. There are five classes in this magical community: Flares, who create and manipulate fire; Flickers, who turn things invisible; Fluxers, who turn themselves into animals; Flyers, who can fly; and Fuzzies, who have a natural affinity for animals and can talk to them. But Nory, a Fluxer, can’t seem to flux into normal animals, but always mixes them up—like a squippy (squid-puppy,) a koat (kitten-goat), or a dritten. But with her new friends in the UDM (Upside-Down Magic) class, she is learning that it’s okay to be different, and sometimes doing things differently can come in VERY handy.

Each book in the series focuses on the difficulties of a different classmate with their own upside-down magic, and The Big Shrink (Upside-Down Magic #6) by Sarah Mlynowski focuses on Marigold, who has a terrible tendency to shrink things, and she doesn’t know how to make them big again. Meanwhile, the principal has banned the students from bringing the latest toys, Dreggs (Dragon Eggs) to school, and Nory and her friends plan a protest. Now Marigold has to see if she can control her powers well enough to help out.

I sat down and read the first six books of this series because I never start a series in the middle, and I have not been disappointed. Between the adorable fire-breathing dritten; the imaginative sport kitten ball (or tiger ball when played by adults); and the “it’s okay to be yourself” message, I’m even working on getting my 14-year-old daughter to read them, though they are a little young for her reading level. The UDM kids are regular kids just like the ones we see every day with insecurities, tempers, and frustrations that they manage to work through together. And their teacher, Miss Star, is exactly the kind of teacher we hope our kids will get . . . supportive and innovative!

The main characters in this book are 10 years old and in the 5th grade, so if you have a middle school kid who likes kittens, dragons, and magic, pick up this series to read. Also, I just found out that Disney Channel just made a movie about Upside-Down Magic, so your kids might already be interested!