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The Witch's Cat #1
I Am a Witch's Cat: A Whimsical and Sparkly Picture Book About a Girl and Her Loving Witch Mom for Kids
In this whimsical picture book, a little girl believes her mother is a good witch—and she is a special witch's cat! After all, every good witch needs a black cat. Together, this playful girl and her loving mom are a perfect twosome, whether they are mixing potions, growing magical plants, or dreaming of wild broomstick rides under a full moon.
For each dazzling spread, author-illustrator Harriet Muncaster handcrafted three-dimensional scenes out of paper and mixed media, then photographed them for a truly distinctive look. With each turn of the page, parents and kids will love discovering all the rich details in the miniature world Muncaster has created.
With plenty of witchy magic and sparkle, this warm story is sure to become a Halloween treat that will be enjoyed throughout the year.
For each dazzling spread, author-illustrator Harriet Muncaster handcrafted three-dimensional scenes out of paper and mixed media, then photographed them for a truly distinctive look. With each turn of the page, parents and kids will love discovering all the rich details in the miniature world Muncaster has created.
With plenty of witchy magic and sparkle, this warm story is sure to become a Halloween treat that will be enjoyed throughout the year.
26 pages, Hardcover
First published July 22, 2014
2 people are currently reading
307 people want to read
About the author
Harriet Muncaster
240 books331 followersHarriet Muncaster studied illustration at Norwich University College of the Arts before going on to get an MA in children’s book illustration at the Cambridge School of Art. In creating the art for her first book for children, she was thrilled to have found a good outlet for her lifelong fascination with miniatures. She lives in Hertfordshire, England.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews
November 12, 2019
Very cute mixed-media illustrations are the high point of this little story about a kid who pretends to be a cat to the "witch" mom.
(These are the off-limit "potions".)
(These are the off-limit "potions".)
October 31, 2022
Bewitchingly adorable! Love the collage illustrations and the girl's (I mean, *cat's*) imagination.
ETA 10/2022: This is my youngest son's favorite Halloween picture book. We read it every year.
ETA 10/2022: This is my youngest son's favorite Halloween picture book. We read it every year.
October 11, 2017
A little girl who never takes off her cat costume is convinced her mom is a witch. Why? Well, the bathroom counter is filled with lots of strange potion bottles the girl is forbidden to touch, sometimes her mom's friends come over, and they cackle as they discuss "spell" books, and she buys odd food items at the supermarket.
The story was cute, and I loved the ending, but I was torn about the artwork.
The girl and her mom are flat 2D drawings posed against elaborate 3D backdrops, and I just don't think they mix well together. It's me, I know, as everyone else seems to be raving about the artwork.
The story was cute, and I loved the ending, but I was torn about the artwork.
The girl and her mom are flat 2D drawings posed against elaborate 3D backdrops, and I just don't think they mix well together. It's me, I know, as everyone else seems to be raving about the artwork.
October 12, 2021
Una historia muy bonita para explicar la maternidad desde el punto de vista del/a niño/a pequeño/a
December 4, 2022
I loved the story and the drawn art, but didn't care for the miniature sets the cut-out pictures were photographed in. But the line of the cat is fabulously active, if that makes sense.
Ah, well. I see what appears to be a series of graphic novels by the author, which would be more to my liking, I think.
Library copy
Ah, well. I see what appears to be a series of graphic novels by the author, which would be more to my liking, I think.
Library copy
October 31, 2019
A little girl declares herself a witch's cat in this charming picture-book from British author/illustrator Harriet Muncaster, casting her loving mother as the witch. Given the "potions" her mother keeps in the bathroom, the odd things she buys at the store, and the cackling she does when her friends come over, the girl's idea that her mother is a witch - a good witch of course! - is not so wild. Perpetually clothed in a cat suit, the little girl acts out her own role throughout. The conclusion of the book - or, at least, the concluding illustration - raises the possibility that the girl/cat has not been imagining things...
As someone who loves witchy picture-books, I have been meaning to pick up I Am a Witch's Cat and its sequel ( Happy Halloween, Witch's Cat! ) for some time now. I am glad that I did, as I found the story quite cute. I liked the tongue-in-cheek aspect here, how the narrative encourages the reader to think that the little girl is simply imagining that her mother is a witch, only to call that impression into question with the final illustration, which depicts the mother flying through the air on her broom. Of course, that too could be the daughter's imagining. The mixed media artwork here, created using scenes that are made with fabric, watercolor, and pen and ink, and then photographed, was highly interesting. That said, I'm not sure it was entirely to my taste - in fact, I usually find such illustrations flat and creepy, rather than cute. Of course, given the subject matter, maybe creepy is appropriate. Tastes vary, and some readers will undoubtedly appreciate Muncaster's artwork more than I did. It is to them, and to readers who enjoy witchy picture-books, that I would recommend this one.
As someone who loves witchy picture-books, I have been meaning to pick up I Am a Witch's Cat and its sequel ( Happy Halloween, Witch's Cat! ) for some time now. I am glad that I did, as I found the story quite cute. I liked the tongue-in-cheek aspect here, how the narrative encourages the reader to think that the little girl is simply imagining that her mother is a witch, only to call that impression into question with the final illustration, which depicts the mother flying through the air on her broom. Of course, that too could be the daughter's imagining. The mixed media artwork here, created using scenes that are made with fabric, watercolor, and pen and ink, and then photographed, was highly interesting. That said, I'm not sure it was entirely to my taste - in fact, I usually find such illustrations flat and creepy, rather than cute. Of course, given the subject matter, maybe creepy is appropriate. Tastes vary, and some readers will undoubtedly appreciate Muncaster's artwork more than I did. It is to them, and to readers who enjoy witchy picture-books, that I would recommend this one.
November 30, 2019
Occasionally, a picture delivers more than you ever expected. This book is a delightful portrait of a little girl who is also a witch's cat, and her mom, the witch. The ending is particularly satisfying, giving the imaginative space room and legitimacy. The illustrations are a mixture of line drawings and beautifully crafted miniatures, which to me are unique and very compelling. I bought this book thinking I'd read it and pass it on to a kid acquaintance, but I love it too much -- the witch's cat is my new hero.
October 21, 2021
2020 reread: Bumping this up to the five stars it deserves. Do I wish I could tweak the dioramas to remove things like the too-detailed organic sprig against the paper cutout fence? yeah, I do; there's details that make some sets feel deceptively sparse or clunky. But that nitpicking indicates that I've poured over each panel for an age. I love it more with each reread, obsessing over and even discovering new favorite details: the way the rooms interconnect; the perfect pattern of the star-studded curtains, perhaps my favorite single detail; the bedroom--with that plush miniature quilt! It's an immersive art style that suits a cozy, kind, enchanted book, and the cat elements speak to me personally. I hope by this time next year I've bought a copy of my own, so someone else can get their hands on the library one.
Original review, 2019: This is beyond charming. The mixed media/diorama photos are unique--and while sometimes too sparse or disjointed, at their best they make for richly lit and cleverly detailed scenes. It's a great complement to the whimsy of the narrative, which is pure wish-fulfillment: the costumed "witch's cat" protagonist's play is enthusiastically embraced by the witch, her mother; their relationship is loving and playful, their lives gentle and cozy. It's the sort of book which makes me wonder if it reads as well to kids, because it feels like an idealized reflection of what childhood should be, and is twee as a result. But I'm not a child, so ultimately I just care that I loved this.
Original review, 2019: This is beyond charming. The mixed media/diorama photos are unique--and while sometimes too sparse or disjointed, at their best they make for richly lit and cleverly detailed scenes. It's a great complement to the whimsy of the narrative, which is pure wish-fulfillment: the costumed "witch's cat" protagonist's play is enthusiastically embraced by the witch, her mother; their relationship is loving and playful, their lives gentle and cozy. It's the sort of book which makes me wonder if it reads as well to kids, because it feels like an idealized reflection of what childhood should be, and is twee as a result. But I'm not a child, so ultimately I just care that I loved this.
October 9, 2014
An adorable child bedecked in a feline costume deduces that her mother practices magic. All the signs are there, mother has potions (perfumes & face creams), she buys eyeballs at the market (olives), her cackling friends trade spells (at book club), and she grows magical herbs (she gardens).
This portrayal of a single parent family will cast you under a spell with it's sweetness and lovingly created miniature and mixed media collage illustrations.
This portrayal of a single parent family will cast you under a spell with it's sweetness and lovingly created miniature and mixed media collage illustrations.
November 8, 2020
Such a creative little book! The art form is a mixed media wonderland of paper illustrations cut out and placed in 3D miniature scenes. It’s fascinating looking at what the background and environments are made of! The story is adorable too, and honestly the book didn’t even have to try that hard to capture my attention. I was hooked because of the neat endpaper from the get go.
October 17, 2020
Lovely illustrations and an ode to all magical mothers.
October 8, 2021
The illustrations are just charming
November 2, 2021
The mixed media illustrations are fabulous and the plot is so sweet.
read-to-bobby
September 29, 2023So sweet and basically our running joke
October 20, 2016
So cute! Elaine was right!
September 9, 2014
A little girl believes that her mother is a witch and that she is her mother’s black cat. Dressed in a cat costume, the little girl gives examples of the witchy things that her mother does each day. She has potions in the bathroom that the little girl isn’t allowed to touch. She buys weird things at the grocery store. She goes magical herbs (like carrots) in her garden that she then uses to make potions in the kitchen. She has a group of friends who come over and they cackle together. All of these examples are shown in the pictures to be completely normal and easily explained. But a nice little twist at the end of the book will have readers wondering if perhaps there’s some truth to her mother being a good witch!
Told entirely in first person by the unnamed little girl, this book is jaunty and playful. It is a very positive depiction of a family of two, their interactions together glow with warmth and connection. The dynamic between the beliefs of the little girl about her mother and the mundane truths shown in the illustrations will have children trying to figure out whether the mother is a witch or not. It’s a simple premise for a book that lets the unique illustrations shine.
And what illustrations they are! Muncaster has created miniature worlds out of paper, fabric and other materials and then photographed them for the illustrations. They have a wonderful wit and dazzle to them. At first the 3D effect is subtle enough to be missed, but once it catches your eye you will be entranced with these unique and lovely illustrations.
Filled with Halloween magic, this book is one amazing treat. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
Told entirely in first person by the unnamed little girl, this book is jaunty and playful. It is a very positive depiction of a family of two, their interactions together glow with warmth and connection. The dynamic between the beliefs of the little girl about her mother and the mundane truths shown in the illustrations will have children trying to figure out whether the mother is a witch or not. It’s a simple premise for a book that lets the unique illustrations shine.
And what illustrations they are! Muncaster has created miniature worlds out of paper, fabric and other materials and then photographed them for the illustrations. They have a wonderful wit and dazzle to them. At first the 3D effect is subtle enough to be missed, but once it catches your eye you will be entranced with these unique and lovely illustrations.
Filled with Halloween magic, this book is one amazing treat. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
September 26, 2014
Oh, am I ever a sucker for this style of illustration. I LOVE IT SO HARD.
This a super cute story about a little girl in a cat costume seriously explaining how she knows that her mom is a witch, and how she's her mom's special cat. The illustrations (which show the mundane truth) add a level of gently ironic humor that will allow young readers to feel in the know.
The real draw here, however, is Muncaster's art--photographs of adorable, cunningly crafted mixed-media models combined with dimensional cut-paper figures. The illustrations give the whole book a cozy, homespun feel, like an exceptionally well-made diorama. The use of light is also notable--there's a page with an stained-glass door that's strikingly lovely, and the penultimate page depicting the little "cat" snuggled in bed has such a contented glow that it made me IMMEDIATELY want to curl up with a blanket myself.
Beyond the appeal for people (like me) who geek out over three-dimensional illustrations, this book is perfect for parents who want non-scary Halloween reads, and for kids who constantly pretend that they're cats (or dogs, etc.)
This a super cute story about a little girl in a cat costume seriously explaining how she knows that her mom is a witch, and how she's her mom's special cat. The illustrations (which show the mundane truth) add a level of gently ironic humor that will allow young readers to feel in the know.
The real draw here, however, is Muncaster's art--photographs of adorable, cunningly crafted mixed-media models combined with dimensional cut-paper figures. The illustrations give the whole book a cozy, homespun feel, like an exceptionally well-made diorama. The use of light is also notable--there's a page with an stained-glass door that's strikingly lovely, and the penultimate page depicting the little "cat" snuggled in bed has such a contented glow that it made me IMMEDIATELY want to curl up with a blanket myself.
Beyond the appeal for people (like me) who geek out over three-dimensional illustrations, this book is perfect for parents who want non-scary Halloween reads, and for kids who constantly pretend that they're cats (or dogs, etc.)
December 20, 2014
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So, I know Middle School Monday is supposed to be about book to read in Middle School, you are all probably looking at me like I have three heads now. I really think EVERYONE should read this book! This book is such a fun read, the pictures are amazing and the story made me laugh out loud.
In the story we have a little girl who believes that her mom is a witch, she dresses up to be a witches cat so that she can be apart of her mom’s daily activities. However, when you remove the little girl’s imagination (in the pictures) you see these things that are making her mom appear to be a witch are just regular everyday things.
I think this is a great story to show kids what having an imagination can do for you, and for the older kids it can demonstrate how sometimes things aren’t what they appear to be.
This book won’t take you very long to read (maybe 5 minutes) and although it will likely be found with your Halloween books, I don’t think it should be limited to only being read this time of year. Do yourselves a favour though and check this one out!
So, I know Middle School Monday is supposed to be about book to read in Middle School, you are all probably looking at me like I have three heads now. I really think EVERYONE should read this book! This book is such a fun read, the pictures are amazing and the story made me laugh out loud.
In the story we have a little girl who believes that her mom is a witch, she dresses up to be a witches cat so that she can be apart of her mom’s daily activities. However, when you remove the little girl’s imagination (in the pictures) you see these things that are making her mom appear to be a witch are just regular everyday things.
I think this is a great story to show kids what having an imagination can do for you, and for the older kids it can demonstrate how sometimes things aren’t what they appear to be.
This book won’t take you very long to read (maybe 5 minutes) and although it will likely be found with your Halloween books, I don’t think it should be limited to only being read this time of year. Do yourselves a favour though and check this one out!
August 27, 2014
A fresh look at witches in the form of a picture book from the view of a child (or is it a cat?) with truly unique illustrations. I think children will love this story.
October 10, 2014
An adorable tale that, while not actually a Halloween book, would be perfect for a Halloween storytime.
May 22, 2015
Perfect for the season and a very cute story that's reminding me of the bit in Calvin and Hobbes where the former gets transmogrified.
October 20, 2016
Adorable!!
December 3, 2023
Un libro sencillo, muy cuqui y wholesome que, además de ser una historia muy interesante y bonita, por no hablar de que las ilustraciones mezclan de manera genial el 2D con escenarios hechos con papel y cartón muy bonitos, también marca el comienzo de la bibliografía de una autora que más tarde conoceríamos por su adorable niña mitad vampiro y mitad hada, sus spin-offs y por su adorable antiheroína y girlboss pequeñísima y mágica: Harriet Muncaster.
Y, a decir verdad, ha empezado de manera espectacular en el mundo de la literatura infantil con ese bonito libro.
Os lo recomiendo mucho, especialmente si os gustan las brujas y la magia en general, y también si sois fans de la bibliografía de Harriet Muncaster en general.
Y, a decir verdad, ha empezado de manera espectacular en el mundo de la literatura infantil con ese bonito libro.
Os lo recomiendo mucho, especialmente si os gustan las brujas y la magia en general, y también si sois fans de la bibliografía de Harriet Muncaster en general.
July 29, 2025
A child in a cat costume tells readers that their mom is a witch because she has "potion bottles" in the bathroom that the child is not allowed to touch, grows herbs in the garden, "magics" injuries all better, etc. It is cute that the child gets to help stir the "potions" sometimes and I like that the mom has a book club. The mom goes out on Friday nights and leaves the child with a babysitter who lets them watch TV and eat popcorn until bedtime. "I don't know where my mom goes. She's always my mom, but I think that sometimes she just needs a break from being a witch." This book seems to represent a single-parent household and one where the parent in question might even be dating. The art is not my favorite in this book and the story could have been better, but I didn't dislike it.
October 19, 2018
I honestly don't know what I expected with this picture book - but it truly exceeded any expectations I could have had. It is the CUTEST picture book, my eerie dudes. With mixed media (paper, fabric, handmade minatures), Muncaster has crafted a whimsical world I would want to live in. And the sweetest little twist - it's a little girl as the witch's cat, convinced her mum is magical - just got me right in my cold, bezoar-lumpy-stone heart. There's just such a texture and almost tangible mood to this story. The Witch's Cat will absolutely be a new yearly Halloween read for myself!
October 18, 2018
I really love the illustrations in this book. I love how three dimensional they are. They really just pop off the page and add to the fun, whimsical nature of the story.
I like how the story is told through the child's eyes. I love how the child believes that her mom is a witch, even though we as readers can clearly see that her mom is just a regular mom doing regular things, but these regular things are given and air of magic in the eyes of a child.
I like how the story is told through the child's eyes. I love how the child believes that her mom is a witch, even though we as readers can clearly see that her mom is just a regular mom doing regular things, but these regular things are given and air of magic in the eyes of a child.
January 8, 2020
Isadora Moon is my daughter’s favorite new series, so of course we had to search out the backlist.
I adored the creative combination of “real” objects and paper creations for the illustrations. My daughter, LOVED picking out the details on the pages as she read to me. The endpapers are adorable. We found this copy via the library, buy might end up adding it to our forever shelf.
I adored the creative combination of “real” objects and paper creations for the illustrations. My daughter, LOVED picking out the details on the pages as she read to me. The endpapers are adorable. We found this copy via the library, buy might end up adding it to our forever shelf.
October 25, 2020
I was so charmed by the lovely illustrations which are a combination of miniature scenes built by the author and the paper cut out illustrations she inserts in them. The contrast between the 3D elements and the flat elements makes this so visually interesting, and the little girl’s conviction that her mother is really a witch is cleverly played off of.
August 21, 2021
Cute story about a mother and her daughter, with the daughter dressed up as a cat. She thinks her Mom is a witch because of various things she does ( which are all quite normal) until the end where the babysitter is caring for the daughter while Mom goes out. We then see Mom riding a broomstick in front of a full moon.
Illustrations using some miniatures. Unique. Well done.
Illustrations using some miniatures. Unique. Well done.
July 28, 2023
Such a fun lighthearted story! The way the artist actually created paper and mixed media displays for the artwork images is so original! The pictures are very sweet and the story is funny. Love how the little "cat" follows her Witch to the grocery store and all these everyday errands just as a child would dressed up around Halloween. :D So cute!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 104 reviews