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Dorrie the Little Witch #16
Dorrie and the Witchville Fair
Bad-tempered Old Irontoes is up to something at the Witchville Fair and only Dorrie suspects.
48 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 1980
About the author
Patricia Coombs
37 books66 followersPatricia Coombs was born on July 23, 1926 in Los Angeles, California and during her school age years lived in Hawaii, Boston, New York, and San Francisco. She was always reading books and would hide in unusual places to avoid getting caught reading instead of playing. She attended DePauw University, Michigan State University, and received her bachelor's and master's degrees in English from the University of Washington. She also studied poetry at New York University.
In 1962, Coombs wrote and illustrated Dorrie's Magic, inspired by her two daughters and their Siamese cat named Dingbat. The book was highly praised by the New York Times Book Review, and Coombs went on to create the "Dorrie the Little Witch" series. She wrote 20 stories about Dorrie and her adventures as a little witch over the next 30 years, ending with Dorrie and the Haunted Schoolhouse in 1992.
Coombs has also illustrated for other authors and contributed to Poetry Magazine.
From: Major Authors and Illustrators, pp. 562-564, courtesy of The de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at The University of Southern Mississippi and Wikipedia.org
In 1962, Coombs wrote and illustrated Dorrie's Magic, inspired by her two daughters and their Siamese cat named Dingbat. The book was highly praised by the New York Times Book Review, and Coombs went on to create the "Dorrie the Little Witch" series. She wrote 20 stories about Dorrie and her adventures as a little witch over the next 30 years, ending with Dorrie and the Haunted Schoolhouse in 1992.
Coombs has also illustrated for other authors and contributed to Poetry Magazine.
From: Major Authors and Illustrators, pp. 562-564, courtesy of The de Grummond Children's Literature Collection at The University of Southern Mississippi and Wikipedia.org
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
July 1, 2019
What was Dorrie - the little witch with mismatched socks, crooked hat, and a penchant for getting into trouble - up to in this sixteenth installment of Patricia Coombs' twenty-book series chronicling her magical adventures? Had she finally been driven to drink, as the result of her endless run-ins with magical practitioners far older than herself? Ha! Of course not! Assisting her mother, the Big Witch, at their potions booth at the Witchville Fair, Dorrie noticed the odd behavior of a grouchy witch named Old Irontoes, who seemed to be stalking her. But although she informed the Big Witch of her suspicions, they (predictably) went unheeded, putting Dorrie, yet again, in the position of having to rescue the residents of Witchville, when they were all transformed into pigs...
Dorrie and the Witchville Fair is another fabulous entry in this wonderful series - one of the treasured memories of my reading childhood - with many of the plot elements I have come to think of as "standard" Dorrie fare. From the Big Witch's general obliviousness, which invariably sets up a situation in which Dorrie must rely on herself, to the malicious magic-worker who is defeated by our pint-size heroine, this story felt both familiar and enchanting, although I have no distinct memory of reading it, as a girl.
Dorrie and the Witchville Fair is another fabulous entry in this wonderful series - one of the treasured memories of my reading childhood - with many of the plot elements I have come to think of as "standard" Dorrie fare. From the Big Witch's general obliviousness, which invariably sets up a situation in which Dorrie must rely on herself, to the malicious magic-worker who is defeated by our pint-size heroine, this story felt both familiar and enchanting, although I have no distinct memory of reading it, as a girl.
November 13, 2017
I am really enjoying these quick, well-done Dorrie The Witch books! The illustrations in this one were particularly great, and L loves them too!!
November 9, 2017
Ahh, Dorrie, the little witch whose socks never match and her shoes are often on the wrong feet, once again saves the day when the evil witch Irontoes, decides she wants to enchant all the other witches while they attend the fair. Dorrie senses something is wrong, and catches sight of Irontoes spying on her as she helps The Big Witch set up for the Witchville Fair.
Ok, so I'm a long time gone from the age of the average Dorrie reader, but the sweet drawings and Dorrie's ability to save the day still tickles me.
Ok, so I'm a long time gone from the age of the average Dorrie reader, but the sweet drawings and Dorrie's ability to save the day still tickles me.
December 7, 2020
Interesting color palette for the illustrations, but they fit the theme of the book. The story kept my interest, but I didn't like how the mom wouldn't listen to Dorrie. If she had listened the disaster that occurred could have been stopped. Although there would have been no story if that happened...nonetheless, I felt like the mom should have acknowledged Dorrie at the end that she should have listed to her daughter and perhaps apologized for ignoring her too. The daughter knew what was up. This book is like a short chapter book with illustrations or a picture book with lots of text.
January 6, 2022
Someone wants to spoil the Witchville Fair!
Time and time again, no one listens to what Dorrie has to say, even after all is said and done. Good thing she always pursues until them end to save them all!! It ends, as the Witchville Fair always does, with everyone piling into a hot air balloon, and sailing through the sky.
Time and time again, no one listens to what Dorrie has to say, even after all is said and done. Good thing she always pursues until them end to save them all!! It ends, as the Witchville Fair always does, with everyone piling into a hot air balloon, and sailing through the sky.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 3, 2024
Dorrie has to save the day when an evil witch turns all the other witches into pigs. Funny and a little bit suspenseful. The illustrations are mostly black and white; some of them have yellow and brown accents.
November 23, 2018
Meh, not my favorite in the series.
November 2, 2008
Dorrie suspects that Old Irontoes is up to something bad at the annual Witchville Fair.
This picture book provides a good example of how prioritizing performing niceness and worrying about hurting someone else's feelings can put one in danger. Dorrie tries to warn her mother that Old Irontoes is planning to do something bad, but her mother refuses to listen to the detriment of herself and others. One's safety is always more important than appearing rude or hurting someone's feelings.
Dorrie is a witch, a little witch. Her hat is always crooked, and her socks never match. She has a black cat named Gink. She lives with her mother the Big Witch and their housekeeper Cook.
5 stars child me
3 stars adult me
This picture book provides a good example of how prioritizing performing niceness and worrying about hurting someone else's feelings can put one in danger. Dorrie tries to warn her mother that Old Irontoes is planning to do something bad, but her mother refuses to listen to the detriment of herself and others. One's safety is always more important than appearing rude or hurting someone's feelings.
Dorrie is a witch, a little witch. Her hat is always crooked, and her socks never match. She has a black cat named Gink. She lives with her mother the Big Witch and their housekeeper Cook.
5 stars child me
3 stars adult me
November 21, 2016
(Probably) my first Dorrie book (though Big Witch does look familiar). The illustrations have a certain charm, if one looks at the details beyond the focus. But the story seems lame to me. Maybe if I'd read the very first Dorrie book first, or if I were a child reading these, I'd like them better.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews