STRIKES AGAIN is pretty much the best of the WORST WITCH books published so far, though the most recent one (ALL AT SEA) is pretty amusing too. But nothing beats STRIKES AGAIN for hilarity. Though often compared to the Harry Potter books, Jill Murphy's series about a young witch is very different and plays up the laughs and jokes much more than the Rowling tales, which include elements of horror and suspense noticeably, and happily, absent from Murphy. THE WORST WITCH was written when the author was fresh from school herself, at age eighteen, and she published it long before she even thought of having any children herself. It has some of the freshness and high spirits of other books written by teens and young children (say, THE YOUNG VISITERS). You feel that anything could happen in these books.
In STRIKES AGAIN Mildred is once more embarrassed by being so bad at everything she does, and constantly put to shame by girls who are more together. And yet she learns not to doubt herself, and her self-esteem rises like a magic potion. Mildred learns that adults and teachers aren't always right, and sometimes you have to learn to lead with your heart. The scenes at school are priceless. The movie version isn't bad either and it stars the divine Fairuze Balk from RETURN TO OZ and THE CRAFT.