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Recently translated into English, Lieve Baeten’s Up and Away with the Little Witch features imaginative colored pencil illustrations paired with a tale of two little witch girls.
The story begins when the girls reading fairy tales in a hammock suspended in the air by a witch’s broom. The girls begin to pretend that the little witch is a witch princess, and Trixie, the bigger witch, conjures up a flying carpet.
When the girls spy a light down below, the witch princess realizes she is hungry. They fly down and meet a caravan witch, who puts on a gypsy show for the girls. Up they fly again. This time, the witch princess needs to use the bathroom, so they fly down and meet a witch on a boat.
On their final journey the girls see a rope ladder coming down from the sky. Climbing up they meet a balloon witch, illustrated on a magnificent fold-up, who takes the girls back to their tree house home.
The beauty of this picture book lies within the details of the illustrations – the little animals which ride along with the witches and all the doo-dads of a witch’s life (smiling suitcase, bat hood ornament, witch toys, etc.) The story itself follows a predictable pattern – a journey, a new character, and another journey. Pre-readers will enjoy following the pictures and retelling the story, perhaps adding their own details as they go.
Up and Away with the Little Witch is a straightforward story with the surprises and interest in the illustrations rather than the text. This magical witch story is not just for Halloween but will last the entire year.
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Kristine Wildner/2011 for curled
up with a good kid's book |
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visit our sister site Curled Up With a Good Book (www.curledup.com)
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Up and Away with the Little Witch