Once-A-Year Witch

by Judy Varga

Booboolina's peculiar compromise in practicing her witchcraft gives the town a unique holiday.

Genres: Witches, Picture Books, Halloween

32 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 28, 1973

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

Booboolina was known to be the wickedest witch in the land in this entertaining Halloween picture-book. Living in an old ramshackle cottage on the hill above a small English town, she terrorized the neighborhood by appearing in the skies above from time to time. Then one day she landed in the middle of town and made off with a young girl. Soon she was stealing a young girl every week, and the townspeople decided something had to be done. But when the men of the town stormed her cottage, they discovered that she wasn't so fearsome after all, and wanted the girls for her witchy school, rather than her cauldron. Although unwilling to leave their daughters behind, the townsfolk reached a compromise, promising that Booboolina could visit town once a year, and all the children would be dressed up as witches and ghosts to greet her...

As someone who enjoys witchy picture-books, and who thought I was familiar with the majority of them (in English, anyhow), I have recently had the great pleasure of discovering just how many titles with this theme were previously unknown to me. Once-A-Year Witch is one such book, and I found it absolutely charming. Published in 1973, it features a fun, original explanation for how the holiday of Halloween came to be, and how the custom of trick-or-treating got started. It has the classic "evil witch proves to have a soft spot" story-line, and features delightful artwork. From the decorative endpapers featuring black cats and jack-o-lanterns, to the vividly colorful interior artwork, the visuals here are attention-grabbing. The town and town-folk clearly hail from the 19th-century, and Varga's depiction of them reminded me a bit of the work of Barbara Cooney (high praise indeed!). Some of the nighttime scenes, which feature a deep blue background, are immensely engrossing, while the yellow-dominated interior scenes also have great appeal. I think my favorite scene was Booboolina surrounded by all of her little witch pupils:



Just wonderful! Highly recommended to anyone seeking witchy picture-books, or charming vintage Halloween tales.

[Capn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute. Started "scary", ended "good", said small audience. (A potential origin story for Halloween).

Has kidnapping of little girls as a major theme early on, and a suggestion that she's eating the stolen children. Can be upsetting for sensitive young audiences. ;)

Booboolina is an amusing name, especially if you pronounce it Boob-oo-lina. ;)