The Daring of Della Dupree

Natasha Lowe

• Publisher: A Paula Wiseman Book/Beach Lane Books
• Year: 2020
• eBook ISBN:
  9781534443693
• Print ISBN:
  9781534443686

Matilda meets The Penderwicks in this charming, magical story about a young witch who accidentally travels back in time—the fourth in the “effervescent” (Kirkus Reviews) Poppy Pendle series.

Della Dupree has the so-called honor of being named after the legendary founder of the prestigious witchcraft school, Ruthersfield Academy. Her namesake left incredibly big shoes to fill, and most days, Della doesn’t feel like she’s up to the task. No matter how hard she tries, Della’s magic seems middling, her spells sad, and her charms not so charming. Deep down, Della feels she will never do the academy founder proud.

Then one morning Della is in the library early to work on her spells before class. Thinking about her name again, she finds herself chanting, “Twelve twenty-three, twelve twenty-three, Ruthersfield was founded by Witch Dupree.” But the open closet of time travel amulets nearby means her careless words have serious consequences. A mysterious wind gusts through the library and sweeps Della back to the year 1223. She ends up alone in a strange time with no idea how to get back home.

Della has never had much confidence in her magic, but left with no choice, she must use her spells and ingenuity to find her way back across the centuries—and maybe finally feel she’s earned her name.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Epigraph
• Chapter One: Della
• Chapter Two: The House on Button Street
• Chapter Three: The Book of Spells
• Chapter Four: A Show of Magic
• Chapter Five: Return to Potts Bottom
• Chapter Six: A Nasty Pottage and a Very Tasty Spell
• Chapter Seven: Things Do Not Improve
• Chapter Eight: A Cottage in the Woods
• Chapter Nine: Castle Hepworth
• Chapter Ten: A Midnight Flight and a New Wand
• Chapter Eleven: Della Meets Lord Hepworth
• Chapter Twelve: A Bold-Faced Lie
• Chapter Thirteen: Della Explores
• Chapter Fourteen: In Which Ivan Draws a Picture
• Chapter Fifteen: A Courage Potion Is Brewed
• Chapter Sixteen: A Surprise Meeting
• Chapter Seventeen: A Different Kind of Magic
• Chapter Eighteen: An Interesting Discovery
• Chapter Nineteen: The Rat Visitor
• Chapter Twenty: Things Get Dramatically Worse
• Chapter Twenty-One: Della Has a Plan
• Chapter Twenty-Two: An Unusual Way to Fly
• Chapter Twenty-Three: Crystal Balls Don’t Lie
• Chapter Twenty-Four: How to Defeat an Army
• Chapter Twenty-Five: Not So Scary after All
• Chapter Twenty-Six: Courage
• Chapter Twenty-Seven: How It Began…
• Chapter Twenty-Eight: Della Dupree!
• Della’s Tips for Time Travel
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Copyright