The heroine of this story is convinced that she is a real witch. After checking her calendar and noting that it is Aunt Ruby's birthday, the girl predicts both a visit to the less-than-loved relative and that her cat won't be allowed to go (without admitting that these events occur each year). For her next trick, the little witch prevents a thunderstorm (and disarmingly invokes her spells against a backdrop of clear blue skies, which in no way diminishes her feat). Her potion to make Aunt Ruby stop pinching cheeks and serving stale cookies is foiled when Aunt Ruby announces that she is not thirsty. With irrefutable logic, Adler's witch stakes her claim to spells and enchantment that happen to be disguised as ordinary events. Children will be charmed by her arguments and by Stevenson's childlike, colorful drawings, which lend a note of informal gaiety to this cute story. Ages 5-8. |