The Witches

The Witches

by: Roald Dahl

Dahl, R., & Blake, Q. (1983). The witches. New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux.

A young boy's parents die in a car crash which forces him to go live with his grandmother in Norway.  She begins to tell him how witches are real, do not like children, and he must be on the lookout for them.  Quickly after receiving this news, she becomes very ill & it forces them to relocate to England.  Unfortunately, in England he becomes trapped in a room with hundreds of witches who turn him into a mouse and he has to muster a plan to correct this catastrophe.  He is left a mouse, but decides he is happy with this outcome.

I did not like this book because I felt that leaving the boy as a mouse was unrealistic and did not fulfill what I wanted to read as the reader.  Although there were many good similes and a lot of rhyme throughout the book, I did not enjoy the story itself.  I would not wish to incorporate this into my curriculum, but if so below I listed a few lessons and videos that I could share with my class.

Lesson Plans & Video Clips