Earwig and the Witch: A Funny Middle Grade Fantasy of Magic, Mystery, and a Clever Orphan for Kids (Ages 8-12)

I bought this after seeing the new Studio Ghibli adaptation and I don't get what the bad reviews are on about. It's a simple children's book, sure, but there's a lot to love here. It is definitely unfinished, but if I had read this as a child I would have adored it and read it over and over. The characters are interesting and the humor is on point. It's worth your time. I wouldn't buy a physical copy unless I was going to gift it to someone because it is very short, though.

This is a great trip for your imagination. Just lik Howl’s moving castle I immediately became invested in the characters. My only complaint...I want more! :)

To start with I love just about anything by this author so I am always on the look-out for something new. This book is definitely geared for younger readers and would be a nice bedtime chapter book. There's enough excitement for boys or girls, but nothing too scary. There's plenty of humor and general silliness that most children would appreciate. The pictures are amusing and are a nice touch for this little story. All in all it's a great little book.I did give it a four for being too short and for not resolving or giving sufficient reason for some of the events in the story, I imagine that this may be the start of a series, and that would explain some of the hanging ideas. I guess I was hoping for a longer story. Really for me it's a 4.5

I only found about this book through surfing HBO Max. There's a new animation by Studio Ghibli and it's done in CGI compare to more traditional approach they been doing. Read the review and it wasn't good, but I also found out that it's actually base on a book. I know that my kids would want to watch it eventually. I thought that they should read the book first. Ordered it, placed it on her desk, she read it and re-read it. She absolutely loves the book. She already read it multiple times and she eventually watched the movie. Of course she loves the book way better. Another great addition to our library.

Another fantasy tale from Diana Wynne Jones, so I was excited when I encountered the Japanese movie which was made based on this book. Another witch like the Witch of the Waste in Howl's Moving Castle of her own book, but it looks different. It seems exciting when Earwig gets used to her new life with the witch, but the story ends with one a rather big episode and all. But still you can enjoy it.

Diana Wynne Jones is the best. This book is suitable for younger children (many of her books are for an older audience).

I'm an elementary school librarian. I read this book the last few weeks of school when students could no longer check-out. The basic story is about a girl who was dropped off at an orphanage as a baby. She was adopted by a surly witch and a mandrake to become their servant. The book tells of how Earwig, a resourceful, plucky young lady, even in what seems to be the worst situation to turn things to her advantage. The majority of the students 21 out of 23, gave this book 5 stars. The other 2 gave the book 3 stars. All the students were disappointed to learn that there would be no more Earwig books.

I watched the movie on HBOMax and then discovered that it was a book. I thought that it was very cute. I will definitely read this to my children.