An enchanted coin. A witchâs curse. And rats, rats everywhere! Whatâs a boy to do? âFresh and satisfying for middle grade readersâ (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).
When Rudi Bauer accidentally takes a witchâs coin, he unleashes her curse. Accident or not, he knows heâs got to fix things, so he tries to return the coin, only to lose it on the witchâs magic mountain just as the snows come. Plagued all winter by terrible dreams, Rudi tries to find the coin again in the spring, but it has vanishedâand a plague of rats has descended on his village.
Then a stranger arrives and promises to rid the village of ratsâŚfor the price of the missing coin. Desperate to get rid of the rats, the villagers agree; but when they cannot pay, the stranger exacts a price too terrible for anyone to bear. Now Rudi is going to need all his courageâand some help from his savvy grandmother and a bold young girlâto set things right in this fast and funny adventure.