"There are many kinds of magic...and once magic is in your blood it attracts more magic," says the royal cat in Carboel at the start of Carbonel and Calidor. Sure enough, Carbonel's human friends Rosemary and John soon encounter magic in the form of a ring set with a fiery red stone that grants wishes to whoever wears it. And it's a lucky thing, too, because Carbonel needs Rosemary and John's help. It seems that his son Calidor has rejected his princely status for the love of a streetwise cat named Wellingtonia (also known as Dumpsie). Even worse, Calidor has apprenticed himself to the witch-in-training Mrs. Dibdin. With all this going on, it's just a matter of time before Carbonel's old nemesis Grisana—accompanied by her slyboots daughter Melissa—hatches a plan to take control of Carbonel's kingdom once and for all.

This third and final volume of the Carbonel series is as full of enchantment and adventure as its predecessors, Carbonel and The Kingdom of Carbonel. Read individually, or in sequence, Barbara Sleigh's fantastic and fantastical trilogy casts an unforgettable spell.

Barbara Sleigh (1906-1982) worked for the BBC Children's Hour and is the author of Carbonel and two sequels: The Kingdom of Carbonel and Carbonel and Calidor

Charles Front has illustrated many books, including Never Say Macbeth, The Great White Whale, and The Little Dressmaker.