A little long-winded, esp. for group story-time I think. And it's really more about the cats, imo, than about the witch. Perfect for those sensitive children, ages maybe 4-8, who don't feel as happy about Halloween as their peers.

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Sizzle was a witch with a reputation for raising outstanding witch cats: they knew how to spit and scratch and slink with the best of them, how to yowl, and (most importantly) how to stare unblinkingly at a bubbling pot, thereby ensuring the success of the potion in brew. Witches came to Hissing Hill from all over, sure of finding the sort of cats they needed. And then one day, a little yellow kitten named Gold was born - a true disgrace to her clowder of black cats. Was this the end of Sizzle's famous cat-breeding? Would her cats now be (horrors!) nice!?!

I enjoyed The Witch of Hissing Hill - the second witchy (and catty!) picture-book from Mary Calhoun that I have read, following upon Wobble, the Witch Cat - although I do become a little impatient with stories that confirm the "evil" nature of black cats, even in fun. (Full disclosure: I have an almost completely black cat, who is a darling). I can't say the illustrations by Janet McCaffery, which have a distinctly vintage feel to them, were really to my taste, but they are certainly vivid! Long out-of-print, and probably only available through the library, this is one Halloween tale I would recommend primarily to those, like myself, specifically looking for older holiday titles. ( )