Earwig and the Witch

Earwig loves life at St. Morwald's Home for Children. She has everyone, from the matron to the cook to the youngest orphan, under her thumb. She has no intention of being adopted -- until Bella Yaga and the Mandrake show up. Bella Yaga proves to have an even stronger personality than Earwig . . . or does she? Bella Yaga and the Mandrake take Earwig home with them despite her objections. Though Earwig is homesick for the orphanage, she is hopeful that Bella Yaga will teach her some magic. Bella Yaga, however, is only looking for "another pair of hands" -- someone to chop ingredients and stir cauldrons and clean the workroom. What follows is an epic battle of wills. Will Earwig convince Bella Yaga to teach her magic, or has the determined show more young girl finally met her match?

This book is so typically Diana Wynne Jones -- quirky and funny and delightful. It skews a little younger than many of Jones' other books, so will serve as a great introduction for young readers. Earwig doesn't seem a sympathetic character at first, but by the end of the book, readers will be firmly under her spell. show less

A delightfully funny little story about an orphan who doesn't want to get adopted, but finds herself the "extra pair of hands" for a witch. Earwig conspires with Thomas the cat to make themselves impervious to the witch's spells, and after a year or so, Earwig has everything just the way she likes it again.

See also: Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman

This is a hilarious tale of Earwig, a little girl dropped off at a orphanage with a note pinned to her saying "Got the other twelve witches all chasing me. I'll be back for her when I've shook them off. It may take years. Her name is Earwig." Though the orphanage had regular tours of potential foster parents going through, Earwig, who has "a very strong personality", managed to never be picked, on purpose. She liked her ability to get whatever she wanted there. However, a very strange couple (though only she seemed to be able to see HOW strange) took her home with them. The woman is a witch who just needs "an extra pair of hands", and the man is something else (made clear by the horns that are not quite hidden on his head). And so her show more adventure begins.

This reminds me, in a lot of ways (including a wild hairdo), of Pippi Longstocking, whom I loved greatly in my childhood. This updated version has magical tricks and treats and no small amount of humor. I wish this was to be a series, but alas, Jones passed away in 2011. Still this is an amazing treat, and I can see why Neil Gaiman says "I would like to declare Diann Wynne Jones an international treasure." show less

Most orphanages are horrible, but Earwig has a surprising amount of power over everyone at St Morwald’s Home for Children, and loves it there. The last thing she wants is to be adopted by the very strange Bella Yaga, demon-attended Mandrake, and talking black cat Thomas. Earwig wants to learn magic, but will need all her ingenuity and help from a familiar to survive.

Fun little story. Earwig sounds like she'll be nasty, but somehow manages to make everyone do what she wants without being either a bully or a schemer. Mostly, she's lucky! There should be a good bit more to the story - her mother, and such - but this is what we have. I needed a break from Strange and Norrell.

Ages 8-11.

Earwig is perfectly happy to remain at St. Morwald’s Home for Children. But one day, her uncanny ability to deter prospective foster-parents fails, and she goes home with the strangest couple: Bella Yaga, a “raggety, ribby” faced woman with terrible fashion sense, and a tall man who seems to have horns above his ears. At her new home, Earwig is instructed to grind rats bones and pick herbs for the cauldron, and soon determines that Bella Yaga is a witch. With the help of her new friend Thomas the cat, Earwig sets her mind to learning magic herself.

Children who love classic fairy tale takes on magic will enjoy the wonderful descriptions of disgusting spell ingredients and secret brewing processes. Despite her fantastic show more situation, Earwig is a relatable character in that she is a head-strong child responding to a situation where someone else is the boss. The witch's threats to give people worms and the brooding mandrake may frighten some young children, but the story is more whimsical than scary.

Zelinsky’s pen and ink illustrations capture the spunk and ingenuity of Earwig’s personality. His illustrations add great visual appeal as he depicts the fascinating details of the workshop and whirling bits of demons.

Fifteen lines of text per page with generous whitespace and simple sentence structure will assist readers transitioning from easy readers to more complex texts.

Earwig is clever, likes a challenge, and is determined to have her way. Readers will cheer on this formidable young witch. Recommended. show less

Earwig and the Witch is Diana Wynne Jones' last published book, released here in the US only a month ago. It's the story of Earwig, an orphan girl with a special power -- the power of persuasion. She always gets her way and is quite precocious because of it. But one day, a strange woman and man-looking-thing come and, despite her best (or worst) efforts, adopt her and she suddenly finds herself as a servant to a witch! With the help of Thomas, the witch's familiar, can Earwig learn magic and change her oppressive situation?

I was very surprised when I finally saw Earwig and the Witch on the bookstore shelf because it's such a short little story. It's possibly Diana Wynne Jones' youngest audience book and it's only 117 highly-illustrated show more pages long. I think it would certainly be appropriate for 7 or 8 year olds -- which I wouldn't say about many of her books! In fact, I think the kid will love it and I hope to read it with him later this month.

I'm not sure if Diana meant for this to become a series, but it seems as if she did because there are a lot of hints and loose ends and mysterious revelations that aren't resolved. Still, this is a charming story and, for all of its brevity, Diana's writing really shines through. All of the characters practically come off the page. This is certainly helped by the illustrations from Caldecott winner Paul O. Zelinsky. They are all fun and perfectly placed. His drawings of the witch's workroom are especially disgusting and amusing!

And yet, I think I will also buy a copy of the UK version illustrated by Marion Lindsay (shown below) as it's in a completely different, but cute, style. I just can't resist the cute little spiders on the cover!

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