Which Witch is Which?

by Judi Barrett, Charlene Collicott (Illustrator)

Overview

Which witch fell in a ditch?
Is it the one riding on a broom?
Is it the one holding a balloon?
Is it the one looking at the moon?
Or is it the one eating a prune?
Judi Barrett, author of the classic, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and its sequel, Pickles to Pittsburgh, offers young readers a fabulous new concept book that will tickle their funny bones while challenging their perceptual abilities. Each colorful page encourages the child to find the "right" witch in a group of witches, all unique and in very imaginative settings. Sharleen Collicott's wonderful illustrations depict them with inventive charm and whimsy. The clever, rhyming clues are in the form of questions and even after the correct answer is revealed, children will want to revisit, over and over again, this most delightful and unusual bunch of witches.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780689829406
Publisher:	Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	09/01/2001
Edition description:	1 ED
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.30(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Judi Barrett is the author of many beloved books for children, including the bestselling Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, Pickles to Pittsburgh, Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing, Lots More Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing, Santa from Cincinnati, and An Excessive Alphabet. She teaches art to kindergarten students at a school in her Brooklyn neighborhood.

Editorial Reviews

Specific questions and elaborate illustrations complicate this hide-and-seek game, whose "witches" are animals in pointed hats. Every spread presents five queries opposite a detailed full-bleed image. For instance, "Which witch looks radiantly rich?" refers to six white rabbits having tea. All wear billowy gowns, but one drips with jewels. The answer may be evident, but more questions take the investigation further. "Is it the one feeling hot?" (A sweaty rabbit fans herself.) "Is it the one stirring a pot?" (A rabbit in a patched hat tends a teakettle.) "Is it the one eating an apricot?" (The bejeweled rabbit nibbles an orange fruit.) Barrett, author of I Knew Two Who Said Moo, tirelessly repeats the title's formula on each new page, rhyming the homonyms "which witch" with "itch," "switch" and "glitch." Collicott's (Toestomper and the Caterpillars) appropriately weird gouaches feature look-alike groups, from polar bears to newts to chameleons, in creepy swamps or decadent interiors. Her near-identical witches wear patterned garments and make subtle movements; a lion palms a gold coin in "Which witch is a sneaky snitch?" The puzzles lose their luster as they are solved, but Barrett's numerous clues and Collicott's intricate visuals delay that inevitable fading. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

K-Gr 2-Barrett uses cartoon animals dressed as witches to help children distinguish different elements in the pictures. The rhyming text prompts readers to find the witch "trying to hitch," "about to pitch," or "learning to stitch." However, young children trying to decipher these busy illustrations are likely to become frustrated. The combination of unfamiliar vocabulary (jig, glum, smug, ghoul) and a difficulty in matching text and picture, such as "Is it the one who is Lean-Or is it the one who is clean" (the lean one looks just as clean as the others), detracts from any enjoyment that the book might offer.-Shara Alpern, The Free Library of Philadelphia Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

A rhyming seek and find makes this book a sure bet for a cozy read-aloud. On the right-hand side, Collicott's (Toestomper and the Caterpillars, 1999, etc.) animal witches fill the page, each unique and with its own witchy hat. They are hard at work, acting, eating, sewing, playing . . . and making trouble. On the left-hand page, Barrett (I Knew Two Who Said Moo, 2000, etc.) presents a mystery-"Which witch is learning to stitch?" and four rhyming questions to help the reader pinpoint the correct witch in the illustration-"Is it the one wearing socks? / Is it the one eating lox?" While in many cases it is obvious which witch it is, the questions give the reader other details to look for in the pictures. And a good thing, too, since many of the activities will be unknown to children on the first reading. The text has the added bonus of highlighting all the rhyming words in colorful fonts, as well as introducing new ones-lean, glum, smug, lox, and nook, among others. Children will delight in the detailed drawings-new things will appear with each reading, and with the text as a model, they will get better and better at describing what they see. A clever and fun book that will have kids learning without even knowing it. (Picture book. 5-8)

Kirkus Reviews