Lynn Gordon (1)

Siblings Audrey and Andrew find themselves exploring the house of a witch in this interactive Halloween board book. Stumbling into the deserted house after Audrey accepts her brother's dare to knock on the front door, the pair make their way through the front hall, past the staircase, into the witch's kitchen, and finally up to the witch's bedroom, experiencing spooky surprises at every turn. They finally manage to escape, just as the witch is returning...

Published in 1996, Adventure in the Witch's House was the first of two Halloween themed board books featuring Audrey and Andrew's escapades, and was followed in 1997 by The Witch's Revenge. I was not aware of the existence of this earlier title, when I read The Witch's Revenge, which I found cute, but unremarkable. The two books have a similar format, in that each two-page spread features a flap that can be lifted, revealing an acetate window through which a flashlight can be shone. When the book is read this way, with a flashlight, each window is meant to reveal a scene. Having read the other book online, I was unable to experience this aspect of story, so I decided to seek out a print copy of this first title, and read it as it was meant to be read. Sadly, I found that the acetate windows didn't work very well, and that no matter how I positioned the flashlight in relation to the book, it didn't produce a clear image on the wall, as it was supposed to do. As the book is long out of print, and fairly obscure, I can't imagine this will disappoint too many young readers. For my part, I still enjoyed it, as a witchy tale, and found some of the visual details - the pile of books next to the witch's bed, with titles like 'One Witch, Two Witch, Red Witch, Blue Witch' - quite droll. I don't know that I'd strongly recommend this one, given the inadequacy of the interactive element, but as someone with a keen (some might say obsessive) interest in witchy stories, I'm not sorry to have read it.… (altro)

Audrey and Andrew are surprised when the first person to turn up to their Halloween party is Samantha B. Witch and her batrachian friend, Daniel A. Toad. Although a little frightened at first, the children and their other guests soon find that Sandy and Danny know lots of fun tricks, and have made the party a success...

Although I didn't realize it when I sought it out, The Witch's Revenge is the second book to feature these characters, following upon Lynn Gordon's Adventure in the Witch's House. Both books are meant to be read with a flashlight, and there are flaps to be lifted, which reveal unexpected and spooky sights. They're long out-of-print, but I would imagine that, if still intact, they would make a fun Halloween reading experience for picture-book audiences who appreciate a more interactive tale.… (altro)