Unfortunately, her bed-making methods fail to meet with approval from Mum or Sage, emptying the dishwasher results in a flooded kitchen and meeting their dad at the airport ends with a security alert.
Illustrated by the author, this is a fun wee book about family life that will make kids laugh - and every mother wince.
The story starts when Becky's mother buys her a secondhand flute at a pawnshop. The girl finds it plays beautifully but the downside is, no matter how hard she tries, Becky can only play one tune, Syrinx by Claude Debussy. Scarier is being drawn to a big house to play for an old man in a wheelchair, who gets younger with each recital and finally leaps from his chair and trots along on goat-like legs.
With her classmate Johnny, Becky is locked in the big house. The pair decide to escape through a window but when they jump out, it is into an unfamiliar landscape. It is Arcadia, with other legends and a few modern touches, the twist being Pan's return to reprise the ancient battle. Described as "part Grimm's fairy tale, part classical mythology, part outdoor adventure", The Enchanted Flute is an original and well-paced story from the 2012 University of Otago College of Education/Creative New Zealand Children's Writer in Residence.
The Vitality Code builds on Michael Oehley's earlier Súperia story but it is not necessary to have read The Four Powers of Daren Sáner to enjoy its sequel by a New Zealand-trained doctor who somehow finds time to write exciting yarns for the 12 to 16 age group.
