Not Just a Witch [Paperback]

Eva Ibbotson (Author), Kevin Hawkes (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

Hectate Tenbury-Smith can turn people into animals, and create new animals out of thin air. She’s an animal witch, and a recent graduate of a school for good witches. Determined to make the world a better place, Heckie befriends a boy named Daniel, and informs him of her mission to do good by turning bad people into animals. Together, Heckie and Daniel perform many a good deed, such as turning the mean owner of a nursing home into a warthog. But then Heckie falls in love with the conniving Lionel Knacksap. Can Daniel foil Lionel’s evil plans and save Heckie from a broken heart?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8-After 30 years at witch school, best friends Heckie and Dora plan to settle down in a small town, Do Good, and make the world a better place. But when they quarrel on graduation day, Heckie is left to carry on alone. She recruits a wacky bunch of helpers to form the Wellbridge Wickedness Hunters: three children, a dragworm familiar, a garden witch, a former witch beauty queen, a wizard hot-air-balloon enthusiast, and a wizard endeavoring to make a walking cheese. At first, all seems to go well. Heckie uses her power to turn humans into animals to rid the town of wicked people and supplement the animal population of the local zoo. However, her plans begin to go awry when she meets a slick furrier who wants to exploit her talents to obtain rare snow leopard pelts. Fans of Ibbotson's other humorous fantasies will be pleased to see more of the same here. The story moves at a satisfying pace and the characters provide just the right balance of silliness and sagacity, masking any moralizing with satire. The black-and-white illustrations add wit and fancy to the book. This light fantasy will not just bewitch, but will bring peals of laughter, too.
Heather Dieffenbach, Lexington Public Library, KY
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Gr. 4-6. Two witches, longtime best friends at their school (their motto was "Witches against Wickedness"), vow to use their powers to make this world a better place. At graduation, however, the women feud, then go their separate ways until a dastardly villain tricks them into casting wicked spells for his benefit. The witches eventually draw together again and work to undo the magic they have done. The fast-moving plot, sympathetic characters, and moments of humor keep the story humming along to its satisfying conclusion. Hawkes' skillful, imaginative ink drawings add to the atmosphere and to the fun. Not a memorable fantasy, perhaps, but an enjoyable, light story that blends magic with everyday life in a way that children will find quite satisfying. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (August 19, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 014240232X
• ISBN-13: 978-0142402320
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #472,339 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Not Just a Witch is not Just for Children, March 26, 2000

By 

Louise L. Sherman "Louise L. Sherman" (Leonia, NJ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Not Just a Witch (Audio Cassette)

Eva Ibbotson's delightful humor combined with Prunella Scales's flawless reading makes this audio book a winner. Two witches, lifelong friends, have a falling out when they appear at a party wearing identical (live) snake hats. They move away from one another and both are courted by an evil man who plans to use their powers to become rich. The plot is fast moving and funny, but it is the many humorous touches that make this story a hit with adult listeners as well as children. Who can resist a balloon inflated by politicians' hot air -- education ministers claiming that more testing will improve education, and an atomic energy minister claiming that nuclear waste is good for fish! Scales reads as if she believes every word so listeners soon forget there is a narrator between them and enter fully into the story. Great listening for ages eight and up.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful, and wickedly funny, March 1, 2004

By 

microjoe - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: Not Just a Witch (Paperback)

This author never ceases to amaze me. She knows how to tickle any childs funny bone with her outrageous characters and the adventures that the children in her stories find. When you read an Ibbotson book, you feel as if she is writing it just for you. Very enjoyable for adults too.

This story is about some kids in a small town who meet a good witch named Heckie with rather unusual powers, she can turn people into animals. You see Hecki and her best friend that is also a witch recently moved to town, and they both like kids. But after a disagreement, they stop being friends. Heckie begins to turn really bad wicked people in their village into animals. And as animals they become nice, and the wickedness goes away. But one day Heckie falls in love with the a scheming con man, who plans to use her powers for his own gain. The kids and her old friend must rescue her from herself. Very enjoyalbe reading!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Just A Witch, May 22, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Not Just a Witch (Paperback)

Not Just a Witch is a book by Eva Ibbotson. One reason why I like this book is because she knows how to tickle anyone's funny bone with the strange characters and outrageous adventures. Ibbottson's descriptions of everything are so detailed you feel like you are actually part of the story. I love how this can be read by a wide range of ages.
Hecate Tenbury-Smith or Heckie, as she likes to be called, is an animal witch. Her parents enrolled her in a school for good witches and she is now a recent graduate. Now she's a witch that wants to make the world a better place by turning people into nice, sweet animals. Heckie meets a boy named Daniel and they form an instant bond. They also form a private club called The Wellbridge Wickedness Hunters. Heckie creates a half dragon, half worm from a miserable duck. She then finds out it gets sick every time someone evil is in their midst. Then a scheming furrier named Lionel Knacksap makes Heckie fall in love with him. Not even the drag worm can show her he is evil. Can they figure out how to stop him before he kills innocent animals?