The Candy Shop War

The Candy Shop War (2007) is the first book in a trilogy by children’s fantasy author Brandon Mull. He is best known for his New York Times bestselling Fablehaven Series (2006-2015). Other works include the Dragonwatch Series (2017-2021) and the Beyonders Trilogy (2011-2013). Sequels to the Candy Shop War are Arcade Catastrophe (2012) and Carnival Quest (2023).

Like his characters in The Candy Shop War, Mull attended the Mount Diablo Elementary School. His fictional town of Colson is loosely based on his own childhood home of Clayton, California. Mull graduated from Brigham Young University and completed a two-year mission in Chile for the Latter-Day Saints. He and his wife have 11 children combined from their previous marriages, perhaps explaining Mull’s interest in writing children’s literature.

The movie rights to The Candy Shop War were acquired in 2007, and plans were made for a film in 2010. Currently, the project remains in development. The novel is intended for readers aged 9 to 11 in grades 3 to 4. It falls into the categories of Children’s Fantasy & Magic Adventure and Children’s Cooking Books. This study guide and all its page citations are based on the Kindle edition of the novel.

The story takes place in the small town of Colson, California, during a contemporary period. Events begin the day before school starts in the fall and covers a timespan of one month or less. A limited third-person narrative technique is used. Events are primarily seen from the viewpoint of 10-year-old Nate, but the perspective of his three friends is also used to a lesser degree. A short prologue is presented from the viewpoint of an adult named John Dart.

The novel opens with a cryptic sequence in which John Dart apprehends a rogue magician, thus establishing a fantasy world that exists within a normal American community. The story then switches to the matter-of-fact daylight world of Colson, where newcomer Nate befriends three local children his own age: Summer, Pigeon, and Trevor. They will all be starting fifth grade together the following day, and their biggest concern is how to elude three sixth-grade bullies.

Once school starts, the children become fascinated with a new candy shop in town that carries an array of enticing treats. The shop is owned by an older woman named Mrs. White. In exchange for candies that give them superhuman powers, the children complete tasks for Mrs. White. As these become darker and more dangerous, the children find themselves enmeshed with rival magicians and dark forces that imperil their lives and their community. As the children try to reverse the damage caused by Mrs. White, the book examines the themes of Magical Youth, the connection between Greed and Power, and Establishing Trust.

Plot Summary

Ten-year-old Nate has just moved to Colson, California, with his family, and he isn’t happy about being relocated. He misses his best friend, but his parents encourage him to make new ones. While riding his bike, Nate encounters Summer, Trevor, and Pigeon, who soon invite him to join their club—the Blue Falcons. Initially, their greatest concern is to avoid being pummeled by three sixth-grade bullies named Denny, Kyle, and Eric.

Coming home after their first day at school, the children stop in at the new Sweet Tooth Ice Cream and Candy Shoppe, owned by a pleasant older woman named Mrs. White. The children are rewarded with free confections in exchange for doing some clean-up chores. Soon Mrs. White hints that she is a magician and has special candies that she will give in exchange for some tasks that need to be done. The children quickly find themselves entangled in Mrs. White’s search for a hidden treasure in Colson. She gives them many magical candies to help them in their exploits, which include breaking into a museum and robbing a grave.

Though the children love the superpowers briefly conferred by the candy, they grow uneasy when Mrs. White asks them to erase another magician’s memory. This is Mr. Stott, who drives the local ice cream truck. Nate and his friends confront Stott and learn that Mrs. White is an evil magician searching for a valuable talisman hidden in town. Stott is determined to keep it from her.

The children grow even more confused when another player enters the scene, a man in a trench coat and fedora named John Dart. He works as an enforcer for the Council of magicians and apprehends those using magic for evil purposes. He cautions the children about trusting Stott completely.

With Dart’s help, Nate and his friends discover that Mrs. White is after the Fountain of Youth. If she grows young again, she will be the most powerful magician in the world. Stopping her requires Nate to skip backward and forward in time to undo a harmful chain of events. Ultimately, he succeeds in slipping Mrs. White a potion that erases her memory when she drinks from the Fountain. At the novel's end, she is turned into a harmless 10-year-old girl, and order is restored to the peaceful town of Colson.