Book: The Witches
Author: Roald Dahl
Illustrated by Quentin Blake
Type: Paperback
Ages: 8-11 years
A tween book with both funny and scary in the right proportion!
The Witches’ motto: “One child a week is fifty two a year. Squish them and squiggle them and make them disappear.”
One word of caution though: This book is not your regular princess cursing, prince saving princess, potion-making witch with a pointy hat on a broom stick fairy tale.
These witches on the other hand, are not really fond of children (as you can tell from the motto). But that doesn’t make this book a scary one that you shouldn’t read. On the contrary, it’s a fun read!
Now you might be wondering, how on earth do witches do a whole “making kids disappear” process without getting noticed?!
They disguise themselves as ordinary, nice and sweet ladies. So how do you come to know a witch is near you?
Well to begin with, they have clawed hands which they hide under their white gloves.
They hide their toe-less, square-ish feet in pointy high heels.
Their spit is of a blue-ish shade (don’t ask me how I know that – hint, it’s in the book!).
Clearly, they’re really good at hiding in plain sight.
The story is about this grandson-grandmother duo who find clues in order to locate these witches and put an end to their nonsense. Nothing to be afraid of. Their adventure includes weird suspicions and going without a bath for many days (Fact: The witches don’t take notice of kids who don’t bathe; but they are able to sense a clean child a mile away!). But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have a bath. It’s just a book, remember?
What I enjoyed most about this book is that it’s a hilarious and adventurous read, it has the perfect balance of funny and scary scenes. This is a story that will keep you on your toes all the way to the very end. It’s hard to predict what will happen next and that sort of makes you keep turning page after page till one of your parents calls you for meals. 🙂
Other Dahl fiction books are available on Amazon here.
If you like my review and would like to order this book from Amazon (kbc affiliate link),
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You can find many other humourous (but dark!) books (also available in booksets) authored by Roald Dahl here.
Revolting Rhymes (Shantanu did an incredible read aloud in the kbc fb group here!)
Roald Dahl: George’s Marvellous Experiments
There are some interactive board books for smallies as well!
Roald Dahl: Birthday Bonanza Board book (10 pages)
Roald Dahl: Fantastic Feelings Board book – Lift the flap,
Roald Dahl: Lift-the-Flap Hide and Seek Board book
Roald Dahl: The Night Before Christmas Board book – Pop up
Roald Dahl: Trick or Treat: A lift-the-flap book
Roald Dahl: Easter EGGstravaganza Board book – Lift the flap
Roald Dahl: Disgusterous Noisy Sound Book (10 pages)
Roald Dahl’s marvellous board books for twitchy toddlers can be found here (there are lots!)
