A Little Witch Magic

by Robert Bender

Bored and lonely for most of the year, Broomhelga, the meanest witch in town, comes alive when Halloween rolls around, planning naughty tricks and creating powerful potions, but what she really desires is a friend.

Genres: Picture Books

28 pages, Hardcover

First published October 4, 1992

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Convinced that she was the meanest witch around, everyone in town avoided Broomhelga, leaving her very much on her own. Although her days were full - eating her lizard-seaweed stew for breakfast, working to harvest her roots, toadstools and weeds, and testing her potions on the frogs in her backyard pond - she did occasionally long for a visitor. Then one Halloween she got her wish, as a group of trick-or-treaters, led by the intrepid Wanda, came knocking at her door. Would she scare them all away? Or would Wanda, curious about Broomhelga for some time, give the witch something she hadn't even known she'd been missing, and become her first friend?

The answer to that question is yes, of course, making Robert Bender's A Little Witch Magic more of a sweet witchy tale than a scary one. That said, there are some spooky elements here to appeal to fans of the frightening: the artwork, done first in pencil and then painted on acetate, has a rather creepy feeling to it, with solid black backgrounds and a vividly green-skinned Broomehelga; while the story, despite its heartwarming conclusion, keeps its witchy protagonist in cantankerous character. I don't know that this is a particularly strong example of the "witchy picture-book" - a pet project of mine, every year at Halloween - as the story felt a little disjointed and just didn't grab me. Still, young fans of the this type of book will probably enjoy it, and the artwork is quite interesting.