SOLVED. Middle Grade Fantasy | Witch with animal powers and a cat familiar, she has a friend witch with maybe plant powers, and main witch went on a date? 2006. [s]

[Camryn]

It feels like maybe a fever dream but it’s also such a specific memory that I have to believe it’s a real book. I’ve looked for my copy everywhere in my childhood home but it hasn’t manifested.

This is a middle grade book around the 2006-2010 era. I for some reason associate it with The White Giraffe. I feel like the cover has Roald Dahl-esque illustration of one or both witches. The animal witch is tall with crazy frizzy hair and the other (plant?) witch is short and stout.

The animal witch can maybe talk to animals? But I think she has a black cat as a familiar. Or maybe she can make brand new animals with her powers and some alchemy? Like jackelopes and crazy animal combos like that.

The main scene I remember, and basically the only plot point, is that the animal witch went on a date with some dude and they were served shrimp for dinner. She remarks on how the shrimp are pink. She says that they’re supposed to be gray. What’s she’s getting at, is that live shrimp are gray, and they’re only pink if they’re dead. She gets incredibly upset at this and revenge might ensue. Maybe she turns him to stone. Maybe I confused that part with Percy Jackson! Either way, that’s what I have!

[Rainbowheart]

Were the characters teen or adult witches?

[Camryn]

They were adult!

[Camryn]

I feel for some reason that maybe the animal witch made a new animal, like maybe a hybrid with a caterpillar or something. Or maybe she was trying to make a dragon and it came out in a way she didn’t intend. I’ll try to post more details if I think of them!

[Camryn]

I think the background of the cover had a royal purple on it. Also maybe the color orange too. A drawing of the tall animal witch and the short plant witch was in the center of the cover. I feel like the tall witch was facing toward the left.

[Camryn]

Oh my goodness I’ve found it! It was Not Just a Witch by Eva Ibbotson. I was right about the purple cover and frizzy hair. Please mark as solved! The winning Google search was “animal witch book 2006,” and I scrolled through the photos until I found it. Thank you for the help!

[Rainbowheart]

Oh, awesome! Super glad you found it. You had so many good details, it was bound to turn up.

Not Just a Witch for the link.



Was one of these your cover?

[Camryn]

For context on the cover imagery I was remembering, I actually read the hard cover version. The art is different than the paperback version you linked :)