A Job for Wittilda
buehner caralyn [illustrated by mark buehner]
Paperback
(Trumpet Club, March 15, 1993)
PreSchool-Grade 2-When you're a witch with 47 cats and are down to your last dried rat, it's time to get out the want ads. Wittilda's attempt to work at a beauty shop ends in disaster, so she goes to Dingaling Pizza, where the applicants are told, "'Five pizzas each to deliver. The first one back gets the job!'" Wittilda balances the boxes on one hand as she flies over town on her broomstick. She is slowed down when she helps a kitten caught in a tree, but still makes her deliveries in time to land the position. The last page shows the witch and 48 cats all eating pizza together by candlelight. The rhythmic language has an effortless flow, and both text and artwork are a great mix of the traditional and the contemporary. The illustrations (oil over acrylic) are a delight, with comic touches to discover at every rereading. The evening scenes showing Wittilda flying through a luminous moonlit night are especially effective. The best book to date by this husband/ wife team, this one is a winner for group sharing."