A gorgeously unusual, emotionally redeeming parable with plenty of heart and just the right touch of magic.
Lee presents a modern retelling of a classic tale of misunderstood magic and small acts of redemption.
This myth-based story is set in England’s Crouch End, where a disillusioned, unnamed old woman, was once full of joy and promise. She wields magic, but after her heart was broken, her spellcasting turned harmful—she now freezes flowers, for instance, with a touch. Her fate becomes entangled with those of a girl named Daisy and her feline companion. As the people of the town grow scared, and then weary, of the cat’s unusual behavior and rapid growth, Daisy’s and the woman’s lives and stories intertwine. The woman has been bitter for so long that she’s almost forgotten the happy person she used to be, but Daisy’s quiet courage and the cat’s mysterious presence chip away at her defenses, revealing a core of kindness that she thought was lost forever. The townsfolk’s fear, fueled by rumor and whispers, is set against the account of the quiet but undeniable bond forming between these unlikely friends, which makes for an intriguing contrast. Retivoff’s expressive full-color and black-and-white illustrations help to bring the deliberately paced tale to life, and the narrative balances the tones of folklore with imaginative delight. Profound lessons reveal themselves softly as names carry secret powers, appearances deceive, and the release of pain brings unexpected beauty, renewal, and hope. The story allows the reader time to reflect on its meanings, especially toward the end, when Daisy breaks the symbolic spell at its center. The stylized prose and theme may appeal more to older readers than very young children, but its message is universal. Fans of poetic storytelling and gentle magical realism will particularly enjoy this tale.
A gorgeously unusual, emotionally redeeming parable with plenty of heart and just the right touch of magic.Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2025
ISBN: 9798218717797
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Lwl Books
Review Posted Online: Aug. 28, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
However the compelling fitness of theme and event and the apt but unexpected imagery (the opening sentences compare the...
At a time when death has become an acceptable, even voguish subject in children's fiction, Natalie Babbitt comes through with a stylistic gem about living forever.
Protected Winnie, the ten-year-old heroine, is not immortal, but when she comes upon young Jesse Tuck drinking from a secret spring in her parents' woods, she finds herself involved with a family who, having innocently drunk the same water some 87 years earlier, haven't aged a moment since. Though the mood is delicate, there is no lack of action, with the Tucks (previously suspected of witchcraft) now pursued for kidnapping Winnie; Mae Tuck, the middle aged mother, striking and killing a stranger who is onto their secret and would sell the water; and Winnie taking Mae's place in prison so that the Tucks can get away before she is hanged from the neck until....? Though Babbitt makes the family a sad one, most of their reasons for discontent are circumstantial and there isn't a great deal of wisdom to be gleaned from their fate or Winnie's decision not to share it.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 1975
ISBN: 0312369816
Page Count: 164
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1975
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
Alert readers will find the implicit morals: know your audience, mostly, but also never underestimate the power of “rock”...
The theme of persistence (for better or worse) links four tales of magic, trickery, and near disasters.
Lachenmeyer freely borrows familiar folkloric elements, subjecting them to mildly comical twists. In the nearly wordless “Hip Hop Wish,” a frog inadvertently rubs a magic lamp and finds itself saddled with an importunate genie eager to shower it with inappropriate goods and riches. In the title tale, an increasingly annoyed music-hating witch transforms a persistent minstrel into a still-warbling cow, horse, sheep, goat, pig, duck, and rock in succession—then is horrified to catch herself humming a tune. Athesius the sorcerer outwits Warthius, a rival trying to steal his spells via a parrot, by casting silly ones in Ig-pay Atin-lay in the third episode, and in the finale, a painter’s repeated efforts to create a flattering portrait of an ogre king nearly get him thrown into a dungeon…until he suddenly understands what an ogre’s idea of “flattering” might be. The narratives, dialogue, and sound effects leave plenty of elbow room in Blocker’s big, brightly colored panels for the expressive animal and human(ish) figures—most of the latter being light skinned except for the golden genie, the blue ogre, and several people of color in the “Sorcerer’s New Pet.”
Alert readers will find the implicit morals: know your audience, mostly, but also never underestimate the power of “rock” music. (Graphic short stories. 8-10)Pub Date: June 18, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-59643-750-0
Page Count: 112
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: April 27, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2019
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