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Summary: one of Jack's magical beans
Review: I highly recommend The Witches to the young and old alike. It is a masterpiece of a book because it is sowed with layers of humor and philosophical seeds that each age group will fin and positively grown from. I've realized how Roald Dahl's writings have positively affected me after going over his works a decade after I read them for the first time in 5th grade.
The Witches is about a child and his grandmother who has had an encounter with witches and thus explains to her grandson how to avoid these women (who look just like ordinary women but have blue spit, no toes, wear gloves to hide their claws and itchy wigs to hide their bald heads). Because of Grandma's sickness, the two go to stay in a hotel on the coast of England where it just so turns out that hundreds of these child-despising witches are holding their national conference to announce the plan to wipe out the existence of "dog dropping" smelling children by turning them into mice! The adventurous outcome, which I won't reveal, is very humorous and unexpected.
The plot is both attractive and fascinating because it is out of this Disney perfect world. Because of this I think kids get the feeling like they've got their hands on something really hot and this gives them a lot of excitement and sparks their imagination. They're used to hearing about how witches get crushed under houses from Kansas and how terrible it is to smoke. And then they come across this book in which witches get away with hating kids and Grandma often offers her grandson a hit off her cigar. They're used to reading books written by authors who write very dryly and with vocabulary words that one may find on a college entrance exam. But Roald Dahl writes in a language that is enlivened by hilarious tongue-twisting and silly vulgar words, and most importantly, it is a language understandable by (but not limited to) children.
For those parents who may have doubts in Roald Dahl because some of his books were banned by anal, unhappy, conservative, old librarians, from personal experience I'd like to say that his books will not only have a positive impact on the fortunate read, but that there is even a glowing difference between Dahl-readers and non-Dahl readers. I can't stress the importance of having a child, (or you as well if you haven't already) read Dahl books. Because of Dahl's creative language, imaginative and ironic plot, his books work like magical fertilizer that kids are nourished by. Once a child has experienced a Roald Dahl book his/her mind begins to open up and bloom, it's inspired to invent, create and accept all but to believe all with a grain of salt. They will become aware and be more likely to appreciate the multicolored reality of a world in which we live in and where everything and anything is possible. I can't think of more positive values for a child to grow on. If you don't understand what good an open-mind and imagination do, let me tell you that most vile acts that take place in this world are caused by narrow-minded people who's imagination was never inspired to look beyond their own desires and who, most likely and unfortunately, were deprived of Roald Dahl as a child.
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Summary: I think it is a beautiful book.
Review: ... ...The story,the witches is about a little boy with a grandmother who always talks about witches.But the boy wanted to find out about the witches so he and his friend walked in a room with a group of witches.That was when the two boys turned into mice!Which made grandmother get a bit frightend,but the two boys told her what happened.Then one of the boys knew a way to defeat the witches.The mouse(or boy) found a mouse maker. At a restaurant, the boy poured some of the mouse maker in the food the witches were eating. All the sudden, the witches turned to mice...like how the two boys did! I like the part when the boy found the mouse maker. Because I loved the idea he used to defeat the witches.
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Summary: My 8 year old stepson loves this, my wife thought "morbid"
Review: Another Roald Dahl classic that I read as a child and now have shared with my 8 year old stepson (who can't wait to read the next one). This is again more of a scary story adventure style childrens novel (about witches who turn children into mice and into hotdogs so their parents will eat them. The story is of course illustrated with both adult and childish humor (its obviously meant to be shared). Read this one with your kids, even the five year old one would come to listen. (that might be because of the voices I used)
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Summary: Action, suspense, and it's funny
Review: This book reminds me of a movie called Hocus-pocus. That night, after the movie, I was so scared, I wet the bed. That movie is kind of like this book, but the book is funnier. This was a daring story about a boy who lost his parents in a car accident. After that tragedy, he lived with his grandmother in Norway. Every night his grandmother told him real stories about real witches. Like how you can tell a witch from a real woman. Witches, she says, have big nostrils, wears gloves or have blue spit. He believes his grandmother's stories. In the summer, he and his grandma went on a trip to a hotel in England. There in the hotel he finds witches having a meeting. The meeting was about a deadly formula called "Delayed Action Mouse Maker". Together, he and his grandma go through a lot of danger and excitement to steal the formula from the witches to save the world's children. I would recommend this book to anybody who likes action and suspense. Plus, it's amusing to read.
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Summary: Derrick's Review on "The Witches"
Review: I read "The Witches" by Roald Dahl. It is a fiction novel. The book was good. The book had a lot of excitement and a little bit of suspense to it. The characters were described very vividly. You could picture them in your head as you read the book. One of my favorite parts of this book was when the Grand High Witch turned Bruno Jenkins into a mouse. Dahl described the transformation perfectly. He outlined every detail. From the hair on the tip of his ears to the very end of his tail. Dahl made the book fun and exciting to read. The two elements that where best described in this book were the characters and the setting. You could see the characters performing in your mind. The settings where magnificent. Places no one every thought to imagine, he imagined them.
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Summary: A bewitching fantasy
Review: I've gotta confess that Roald Dahl is my favorite author! The Witches is definitely one of his best, and one of my favorites. It keeps you on the edge of your seat and makes you roll on the floor laughing. Anyone would like this-- my grandma read it and loved it!! It's definitely worth buying, and I'm sure any other RD fan would agree with me!!!
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Summary: The Witches
Review: This is a book about a boy,and his grandmother and witches.His grandmother tells him about witchesand he wounders if that is why his grandmothers thumb is missing.So oneday he was his treehouse and a lady was talking to him,so he thought it was a witch and she was.Later on they go rent a room in a hotel and he needs a place to teach his mice some tricks but he cant get cought.He didnt no that witches came in the room because they just came in.So they found him and turned him into a mouse.You should read and find out what else happens to the boy,its very good on what happenes next.
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Summary: The Witches
Review: Witches is a wonderful book! It's about a Grandmother and her Grandson.They go to a hotel but they don't know what their in for.The leaders of all the Witches in England is staying there! One day the boy wen't into a meating room to train his pet mice, but he thuoght that the people who were comming in were nice people but they were witches!They were talking about a formula that would wipe out all the kids in England. I like this book because it's funny and the author let his imagation run wild. I think the theam of the book is that nothings impossible.
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Summary: Delayed action mouse maker
Review: Do you know about real witches? I bet you think they have black hats and ride on broomsticks. Wrong! In this book you will hear about a little boy as he learns the differences between fairy tale witches and, real ones. Also this little boy overhears the witches as they talk about how to get rid of children. The grand high witch tells the other witches she has a formula to turn kids to mice. Delayed action mouse maker. Are all the kids in the world doomed to become mice?
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Summary: a great book for children
Review: At first I thought I wasn't going to like this book.That's what I think about alot of books because I really don't like to read. My teacher started reading it at school and she made it so interesting with all of the very interesting and exciting voices. This book is about a boy and his grandmother who try to kill all of the witches in England. My favorite part was when the little boy was stuck in the theater with the witches. I liked the ending because it was very interesting; the lifestyle ,that is, of the little boy.
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