With one bestseller under her belt, Bridget Thoreson would be foolish not to look for a strong follow-up -- and she found one simply by lowering the age of her target audience.

The Unofficial Hocus Pocus Cookbook for Kids is, after all, the logical successor to 2021's The Unofficial Hocus Pocus Cookbook, especially now that the popular cult classic film Hocus Pocus has gotten its long-awaited sequel.

I'll offer the same caveat I gave in my review of the first one: This is an unofficial tie-in, so don't expect movie stills or other overt connections in its pages. Instead, Thoreson draws inspiration from the movie, a homage drawn from dialogue and casual references in the script. (And, I've since learned, this year saw the release of Hocus Pocus: The Official Cookbook, presumably with Disney's blessing, no doubt based on the success of Thoreson's first book and trying to steal her thunder.)

So far as the recipes here are concerned, they're pretty simple for kids to make -- perhaps, depending on the youngster's experience in the kitchen, with some adult supervision. The book is divided into the following chapters: Breakfasts (including Aralia Berry Jam & Pancakes, Glorious Peanut Butter Smoothie, Enchanting Cheese Gougere and "Good Zombie" Toast), Mains (such as Harvest Festival Pizza, Oil of Boil Soup, Black Magic Meatballs, Dead Man's Toes and Trapped in Salt Corned Beef Grilled Cheese), Sides (including Spell for Reuniting Potatoes, Head of a Lover and Petrified Spiders), Desserts & Treats (such as Eye Cream Cookie Dip, Fully Charged Crystal Candy, Poisoned Apple Pie, Witches' Hat Cookies and In the Light of the Moon Pie) and Drinks (including Eldest Sister's Seltzer, Middle Merry's Cocktail and Luring Lavendar Lemonade).

Unlike the previous book, there's not a section for cocktails. Given the target audience, I suppose that's for the best.

Thoreson strives for a tone in keeping with the movies, so look for some florid prose in the descriptions. Take this example, from Angelica Leaves Herb Blend & Aged Roast: Burning these herbs won't lift a curse, but using this blend will ward off the hex of a flavorless roast. Normally you'd want your meal to be as young -- I mean fresh -- as possible, but in this case a perfectly aged piece of beef will have more flavor and be as tender as an innocent young child.

The author also provides a nice introduction, with safety tips for inexperienced chefs and a brief glossary of common cooking terms you'll find in her recipes.

My kids are reaching the age where it's time to introduce them to some basic cooking techniques. A book like this, which ties into a movie they like, helps to whet their appetite for the experience, and Thoreson's recipes look just challenging enough to make and good enough to eat.