Alice and Greta: A Tale of Two Witches

Trained at the same magical academy - Miss Mildred Mildew's School of Magic - Alice and Greta knew the same spells and curses, the same chants and brews. But although they possessed the same knowledge, they understood it differently. Never were two witches more dissimilar: Alice liked to help, and Greta to harm. But Greta's ignorance of the "Brewmerang Principle" - Whatever you chant, Whatever you brew, Sooner or later Comes back to you! - led to a very sticky defeat, in the end...

I'm so glad that my friend Kathryn reminded me of Alice and Greta, which I first encountered a few years ago, while working in the children's section of a large bookstore. An adorably witchy picture-book, ideal for the Halloween season, it is an engaging show more holiday teaching-tale, exploring the idea that magic (like knowledge) can lead to either good or bad, depending upon the intentions of the person using it. show less

Well hmm. A little too earnest for my taste, but the humor made the lesson palatable. The art is fun. But, honestly, who can blame poor Greta for being sour when she's cursed with such ugliness? If only the two had been equally ordinary-looking, with their disposition showing through in their carriage and grooming....

I thought this was a fun little book. I quite enjoyed the artwork as well as the message about karma. I did wonder about the appearances of the two witches. They were meant to be the same age, but the 'good' witch looked quite young while the 'bad' witch looked old. It seems to me that this just reinforces the demonization of the aged that is so often seen in fairytales. My six year old loved it though.

I liked this book for three reasons. In the story of Alice and Greta, two witches use their powers in opposite ways, providing an underlying moral for students. Throughout the story, Greta uses her magical powers for evil. She takes away the joy in people’s lives for fun, while Alice uses her powers to help people. At the end, Greta was stuck in the marshmallow goo she was trying to dump on Alice and others because she forgets the “brewmerang principle” that “whatever you chant, whatever you brew, sooner or later it comes back to you!” This teaches children that the way they treat others will ultimately reflect back on them, so they should treat others the way they would want to be treated. This lesson also ties into the show more concept of karma. I think it’s important that people understand that their actions have implications for the future, and can come back to help or hurt them at some point. Also, I liked the repetition and organization of the book. The “brewmerang principle” is repeated throughout the book, making it easy to follow and make predictions about how this idea will affect Greta. The book is organized by alternating scenes of Alice helping people and Greta hurting people. I think this allows the reader to make an easy comparison between the two characters and identify their differences. Lastly, I think the illustrations provide context and clearly show the two personalities of the witches. Alice is always pictured in bright warm colors surrounded by pleasant scenery such as animals, flowers, or smiling children, which portrays her sweet and caring personality. Greta, on the other hand, is dressed in dark clothing and has a scarier, more rigid appearance than Alice, creating a colder and mischievous persona. The illustrations make the divide between the two witches’ traits easy to compare and contrast. show less

A very cool book - I bought this at a tag sale because... well... it's witchy, so it's right up my alley! :) It's a cute book that delivers the message: "What you give, you get back." So it's right in line with witchy/pagan teachings, so if pagan parents are looking for children's books, I definitely recommend this one.

Of course, the message is one that will resonate with all parents and all kids, pagan or not.

I also love the cleverness of 'The Brewmerang Principle.' Very smart!

This is a GREAT book for little Pagans.

This is a GREAT book for little Pagans.