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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
Such a good book, I would say it's for kids a little younger than me, but it's still a great read.
For me, this is a rare case of “the movie was actually better than the book.” Even though I don’t remember a whole lot about the movie because I was so young when I watched it.
I read this a few years ago. We enjoy watching the Disney movie based on these novels, so I thought I would go to the source. Different from the film, but an enjoyable adventure.
Children's classic that sucks me in again upon re-reading as an adult.
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Bed-Knob and Broomstick (My Kindle Review)
These two beloved children’s novels in one duo, “The Magic Bedknob” and “Bonfires and Broomsticks”, follows the magical adventures of the Wilson and their magical friend Miss Price who is a witch-in-training. A simple and charming read that’s has a touch of heartfelt-ness. A- (91%/Excellent)
These two beloved children’s novels in one duo, “The Magic Bedknob” and “Bonfires and Broomsticks”, follows the magical adventures of the Wilson and their magical friend Miss Price who is a witch-in-training. A simple and charming read that’s has a touch of heartfelt-ness. A- (91%/Excellent)
adventurous
fast-paced
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
A fantastic journey from my youth. I don't remember much...
I'll be honest one of those stars is because it's become an endearing classic. I don't remember much about the movie other than it had Angela Lansbury and music. I read over the wiki before writing this and let me say kudos to Disney for rewriting most of this. In fact the book and movie aren't much alike, nothing new there, however the movie is better. Even in the 60s they knew better than to include some of what's in this book (and also learned in 96 they rereleased this with all the cut scenes reinserted so I might like to find that).
Anyhow, when you're reading old classics, you unfortunately expect the casual racism but it's pretty bad in this kids' book. I'll talk more about this as I go. This was actually two novellas The Magic Bedknob and Bonfires and Broomsticks mushed together (which makes sense)
The first is set in the blitz (which actually isn't all that clear in the book but to be fair when this was written, it would have been clear). The kids, Carey (who is around your age, literally what it says so probably 11-13), and she's the only girl, the middle brother, Charles and the six year old Paul have been sent out of London to an aunt's place in the country for safety. They help Miss Price when she falls off her bike only to learn that Paul has seen her flying on a broom stick.
Price is much more menacing in the book, wanting to be the wicked witch but unable to pull it off. For some reason gives the youngest kid the powerful bed knob (in exchange for their silence on her craft) that can go anywhere in the world or back in time. In book one they take the book first to London to see mom (doesn't work out well) and the second time Price thinks I should probably go with them.
And they go to an island (which is populated by anthropomorphic animals in the movie) filled with cannibals. Yes, you guessed it, every negative black stereotype you can think of was in here. They're mostly naked, savage, dim witted black people who dance around and threaten to eat Price and the kids. The edition I selected here was the one my library had (literally from 1957) has art in it and praise for it capturing the book's essence. It certainly captures the racism. Little Black Sambo has nothing on this art where they're mostly black ink, hair and white eyes. It's amazingly cringeworthy (so yeah even with the casual racism in Disney movies in the 60s, they dumped this nightmare out of the movie).
In the end they barely make it out alive, trash the bed and the aunt sends them away for being awful and that's how it ends, with a kids' suck message and punishment. The second half (the other novella) is two years later. Auntie is dead and the kids have figured out that Miss Price has placed an ad to have kids come room with her in the summer. They go there only to learn she's burned all her books on magic and they are so disappointed she gave it up.
However, she bought the bed at Auntie's estate sale and let's the kids use it, again unsupervised (child safety not a thing in the 1940s apparently). They go back in time a few hundred years to find a failed wizard/alchemist type and they bring him to the future (their present). Shockingly it goes bad (literally every time they use this bed it does, probably should have set it on fire or something). And when they take him back they made it worse (hi, witchcraft at the end of the middle ages/renn period is likely to get you killed) and Miss Price has to step in again.
It has another bittersweet ending and the final actions making you wonder if Price forgot she turned Paul into a frog on their first visit (doing so with Emelius would have been so much easier but then we would have lost out on the Substitutiary Locomotion spell which is way less important in the book than the movie).
It's another classic where I can say, I'm glad I finally read it but at the same time, didn't particularly enjoy it.
Anyhow, when you're reading old classics, you unfortunately expect the casual racism but it's pretty bad in this kids' book. I'll talk more about this as I go. This was actually two novellas The Magic Bedknob and Bonfires and Broomsticks mushed together (which makes sense)
The first is set in the blitz (which actually isn't all that clear in the book but to be fair when this was written, it would have been clear). The kids, Carey (who is around your age, literally what it says so probably 11-13), and she's the only girl, the middle brother, Charles and the six year old Paul have been sent out of London to an aunt's place in the country for safety. They help Miss Price when she falls off her bike only to learn that Paul has seen her flying on a broom stick.
Price is much more menacing in the book, wanting to be the wicked witch but unable to pull it off. For some reason gives the youngest kid the powerful bed knob (in exchange for their silence on her craft) that can go anywhere in the world or back in time. In book one they take the book first to London to see mom (doesn't work out well) and the second time Price thinks I should probably go with them.
And they go to an island (which is populated by anthropomorphic animals in the movie) filled with cannibals. Yes, you guessed it, every negative black stereotype you can think of was in here. They're mostly naked, savage, dim witted black people who dance around and threaten to eat Price and the kids. The edition I selected here was the one my library had (literally from 1957) has art in it and praise for it capturing the book's essence. It certainly captures the racism. Little Black Sambo has nothing on this art where they're mostly black ink, hair and white eyes. It's amazingly cringeworthy (so yeah even with the casual racism in Disney movies in the 60s, they dumped this nightmare out of the movie).
In the end they barely make it out alive, trash the bed and the aunt sends them away for being awful and that's how it ends, with a kids' suck message and punishment. The second half (the other novella) is two years later. Auntie is dead and the kids have figured out that Miss Price has placed an ad to have kids come room with her in the summer. They go there only to learn she's burned all her books on magic and they are so disappointed she gave it up.
However, she bought the bed at Auntie's estate sale and let's the kids use it, again unsupervised (child safety not a thing in the 1940s apparently). They go back in time a few hundred years to find a failed wizard/alchemist type and they bring him to the future (their present). Shockingly it goes bad (literally every time they use this bed it does, probably should have set it on fire or something). And when they take him back they made it worse (hi, witchcraft at the end of the middle ages/renn period is likely to get you killed) and Miss Price has to step in again.
It has another bittersweet ending and the final actions making you wonder if Price forgot she turned Paul into a frog on their first visit (doing so with Emelius would have been so much easier but then we would have lost out on the Substitutiary Locomotion spell which is way less important in the book than the movie).
It's another classic where I can say, I'm glad I finally read it but at the same time, didn't particularly enjoy it.
Serious points off for the South Sea cannibals episode