British History, Witchcraft, Witch Hunters, Apothecary, The Plague, Isaac Newton
The Elixir
by Lindsay Galvin
Key information
Author: Lindsay Galvin
Illustrator: Kristina Kister
Release Date: 5th June 2025
Book type: Short, Dyslexia-friendly, Barrington Stoke
Star rating: ★★★★
Reader level: Growing readers
Age: 8+, KS2
Overview
With a witchfinder skulking about town, gifted healer Ann and a young Isaac Newton must be careful not to draw too much attention in this high-stakes story from Lindsay Galvin.
Will the discovery of the Elixir of Life lead to a death sentence for a talented young healer?
Ann Storer has inherited her grandmother’s mysterious gift of healing, which she shares through the special tinctures she dispenses in her family’s apothecary shop. When she combines her talents with the genius of a young Isaac Newton, recently arrived to board above the shop, the two create an incredible elixir with seemingly unlimited powers.
But seventeenth-century England is a dangerous place to display any special abilities, and Ann must hide all evidence when witchfinder Abel Geach arrives in town.
So when the plague starts to run rife and those she loves are in danger, will Ann risk everything to help them?
Key concepts/themes
- Medicine
- 17th Century Britain
- Witchcraft
- Apothecaries
- Magic
- Illness
- Witch hunters
- Family
- Loyalty
- Personal identity
Considerations
- Death - plague and drowning
- Witchcraft and magic
- Witch hunters
Curriculum links
History -
- 17th Century Britain
- Sir Isaac Newton
- Apothecaries and historical medicines
- Witchcraft and Witch hunters
Additional teaching opportunities
1. Writing
- Wanted poster
- Instructions (how to create the Elixir)
- Biography (Sir Isaac Newton)
- Non-chronological report (Sir Isaac Newton/apothecaries)
- Diary entry (Ann)
- Recount (Ann's trial)
- Letter (Ann convincing authorities to allow help from witches)
2. PSHE
- Personal identity
- Talents
- Persecution
3. Science/DT
- Creating an Elixir
- Apothecary recipes
- Lavender bags
Vocabulary
| Tier 2 | Tier 3 |
|---|---|
| Sir Isaac Newton, apothecaries |
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