Mary Norton's low fantasy about witchcraft and time travel features the usual terribly proper children off having smashing adventures in between tea times (in other words, it's British) thanks to a witchy neighbour and a magical bed knob. The action trundles along, helped in part by a slew of playful ink drawings (can you spot the black cat?!), and the "happily ever after" ending arrives with a rather poignant twist. Great bedtime reading for the tykes but not quite engaging enough for adults wishing to reconnect with children's literature. ( )

Carey, Charles och Paul skickas en sommar till Bedfordshire för att hälsa på sin gamla faster. I grannhuset bor den prydliga fröken Price, som i all hemlighet håller på att lära sig flyga på ett kvastskaft.

En häxa störtar med kvasten
En natt störtar hon till marken och vrickar foten. Barnen hittar henne liggande under cederträdet med vrickad fot. Hennes grå kappa och kjol är sönderrivna och skrynkliga och håret hänger i testar.

De hjälper henne in i sitt hus och lovar att inte tala om för någon att hon är en häxa, eller att hon fallit av kvasten.

Den magiska sängknoppen
Som tack får barnen en förtrollad sängknopp. När den är fastskruvad i sängstolpen kan de resa vart de vill, både geografiskt och i tiden.

One of my all-time favorite books as a child. Actually I loved anything Mary Norton wrote. ( )

The second part of this book was better than the the first half in my opinion. I mean I liked the book overall, but the first half was boring at times and more introducing the Miss Price and the three main kids. The second part you actually started having an adventure.

I should also note that yes the movie with the same title is based on both the books. The move is a little different though with the plot. In some ways I kind of like the movie better.

This was written before the Borrowers too, probably her more famous book series. I liked those books better too. Like I said the first part to me seemed a little choppy, but the second half is better. ( )

I don't remember reading this when I was young, which is surprising because I loved the Borrower books. Never saw the movie either, which is probably fine. It's my favorite kind of fantasy book, magic happening to ordinary people, especially if it's in England and written in a droll, charming way.
There's a trip to a South Seas island that turns out to have cannibals, which will make this problematic for some people. ( )