The Witches By Roald Dahl

 

Welcome to my stop on the celebration of Roald Dahl’s 100th birthday!  You’d be hard pressed to find anyone who hasn’t had some interaction with one of Dahl’s books.  Today I am going to share my thoughts on my favorite – The Witches.  Don’t forget to check out the other stops on the tour and enter the giveaway!

 

I received this galley in consideration for an honest review.

The Witches By Roald DahlThe Witches by Roald Dahl
Published by Penguin on October 1, 1983
Genres: Children's
Goodreads

This is not a fairy-tale. This is about REAL WITCHES. Real witches don't ride around on broomsticks. They don't even wear black cloaks and hats. They are vile, cunning, detestable creatures who disguise themselves as nice, ordinary ladies. So how can you tell when you're face to face with one? Well, if you don't know yet you'd better find out quickly-because there's nothing a witch loathes quite as much as children and she'll wield all kinds of terrifying powers to get rid of them.

 

 

 

 

 

I read many of Roald Dahl’s books as a child, but The Witches was always my favorite.  How could you not love a book with a cigar smoking grandmamma and a little boy who is ultimately content to spend his life as a mouse?  The thing about Dahl’s books is the sort of secret world you feel you’ve entered when you read it, as if the author is letting you in on this crazy story with some big secrets.  For instance, how can you spot a witch?  They look like us, with a few tell tale signs that most people (i.e. grown-ups) wouldn’t even notice. The forward is written as a sort of warning to the reader, which sets the tone for the whole book.  I also loved the duo of Grandmamma and her little boy, who is the nameless narrator in the story.  Grandmamma loves him unconditionally, no matter his form, and not only does she demonstrate this, the boy is certain of that love.  Although they aren’t a traditional family unit, they are a team. If you think about it, the grandparent/grandchild relationship plays a big role in many of Dahl’s books, as do themes of kindness and rewards for those who show integrity.  The Witches has all of those themes plus the darkly funny humor that doesn’t try to shield young readers from life’s realities.  The adventure of Grandmamma and her grandson and their quest to eradicate England of Witches captivated my imagination as a kid and I have never forgotten the story.

 

 

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September 5 – Peace Loves Books – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Excerpt
September 5 – The Compulsive Reader – Danny, The Champion of the World Review
September 5 – The Starry Eyed Revue – James and The Giant Peach Review
September 6 – Ex Libris Kate – The Witches Review
September 6 – Cracking The Cover – The Magic Finger Feature – Short Review and History
September 6 – Lost In Lit – The Witches Feature – Revisiting The Witches as an adult
September 7 – Cozy Reading Corner – Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator Excerpt
September 7 The Plot Bunny – The Magic Finger Review
September 7 Lilli’s Reflections – The Twits Excerpt
September 8 – The Irish Banana – Matilda Review
September 8 – Ticket To Anywhere – Danny, The Champion of the World Excerpt
September 8 – Cuddlebuggery – Quentin Blake’s Illustrations of Roald Dahl‘s Books Feature
September 8 – Beth Fish Reads – Going Solo Review
September 9 –  Ravenous Reader  The BFG Excerpt
September 9 – Paper Cuts  The Giraffe, the Pelly and Me Excerpt
September 9 – The Lovely Books – The Witches Excerpt
September 9 – A Glass of Wine – James and the Giant Peach Excerpt
September 10 – Novel Novice – George’s Marvelous Medicine Excerpt
September 10 – YA Bibliophile – Fantastic Mr. Fox Review
September 10 – Watercolor Moods – The Magic Finger Feature – Collage
September 11– Jessabella Reads – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Review
September 11– Who R U Blog – Charlie and the Glass Elevator Feature – Trivia
September 12 – Belle of the Library – The Twits Review
September 12 – Book Mania Life – George’s Marvelous Medicine Review
September 12 – The Book Swarm – Danny, The Champion of the World Excerpt
September 12 – Book Belles – James and the Giant Peach Feature – Book to Movie
September 13Roald‘s birthday! – Brittany’s Book Rambles – Matilda Excerpt
September 13Roald‘s birthday! – Mundie Kids  The BFG Review
September 13Roald‘s birthday! – Read Now Sleep Later – Boy Excerpt
September 13Roald‘s birthday – Consumed By Books – Matilda Excerpt
September 13Roald‘s birthday – I Am A Reader – James and the Giant Peach Excerpt
September 13 – The Novel Life – Lessons that Roald Dahl has taught me feature
September 13The Book Rat – Esio Trot Excerpt
September 14 – Belle’s Bash – The BFG Excerpt
September 14 – WinterHaven Books – Esio Trot Excerpt
September 14 – A Book and A Latte – The Magic Finger Excerpt
September 14 – Hello Chelly – Matilda Feature – BookBags
September 14 – Loving Dem Books – Youtube Feature
September 15 – Writing My Own Fairy-Tale – George’s Marvelous Medicine Review
September 15 – The Book Bandit -The Giraffe, and the Pelly and Me Review
September 15 – Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile – Esio Trot Review
September 15 – Coffee, Books and Me – Top Ten Reasons You Should Read Roald Dahl‘s Books
September 16 – Undeniably Book Nerdy – Boy Review
September 16 Supernatural Snark – James and the Giant Peach Review
September 16 – My Friend Amy – Going Solo Excerpt
September 16 – The Quiet Concert  Danny, the Champion of the World Review
September 17 – Book Briefs – Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator
September 17 – Andi’s ABCs – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Feature – ABCs
September 17 – Just Another Rabid Reader – The Magic Finger Review
September 17 – Adventures of Cecelia Bedelia Roald Dahl Feature – Food Feature
September 18 – Bumbles and Fairy-Tales – Matilda Feature – Reading With Dad
September 18 – Addicted 2 Novels – Esio Trot Review
September 18 – Pure Imagination – Fantastic Mr. Fox Excerpt
September 18 – Green Bean Teen Queen – What Roald Dahl Means To Me Feature
September 19 – Bookiemoji  The Witches Excerpt
September 19 – Shooting Stars Blog – Roald Dahl Feature – Etsy Products
September 19 –  Alexa Loves Books – Matilda Feature – Style Files
September 19 – Nightly Reading – Matilda Review

About Roald Dahl

Roald Dahl (1916–1990) was one of the world’s most imaginative, successful and beloved storytellers. He was born in Wales of Norwegian parents and spent much of his childhood in England. After establishing himself as a writer for adults with short story collections such as Kiss Kiss and Tales of the Unexpected, Roald Dahl began writing children’s stories in 1960 while living with his family in both the U.S. and in England. His first stories were written as entertainment for his own children, to whom many of his books are dedicated.

Kate


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