Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 159
 Brilliant fun! May 18, 2006
Carol Scott (Scotland)
98 out of 100 found this review helpful
This is the story of a good-natured witch and her contented, purring, cat flying through the air on a broomstick without a care in the world - until the wind blows away the witch's hat. When they fly down to retrieve the hat, a polite, helpful dog brings it to them and becomes another passenger on the broom. Throughout the book they also pick up a bird and a frog, making the broom very overcrowded. Then disaster strikes; the broom snaps in two causing the witch to become separated from her friends and a potential meal to a large red dragon.
This is an extremely eye catching and appealing book aimed at preschool and lower primary school children. Donaldson and Schefflers story and illustrations work extremely well together to capture children's attention right from the start of the book. The use of illustration mixed through the large, bold, font makes it seem friendly to a beginner reader. But this is essentially a book for sharing, the use of repetition throughout the story encourages children to join in the reading and the book appeals to their sense of humour with comical allusions:"I'm planning to have WITCH AND CHIPS for my tea". Julia Donaldson has also made a song to accompany the book that children can enjoy singing and performing to.
This is a fantastic book and I cannot recommend it enough.
Wonderful December 7, 2003
Andrew Cranmer (Woking, UK)
26 out of 26 found this review helpful
One of those books my nearly four year old keeps wanting again and again, and which I never tire of reading. A wonderful rhythm which allows you to add your own ideas with stress and voices. There is the repetition of events small kids love, and the breaking of that repetition with surprises, which they also love. Plus the questioning of stereotypes is fun, for example contrasting the character of the dragon here and in Ratty Tatty is something he found fascinating, and having a friendly witch. Great illustrations.Third time through and he could already finish off most of the sentences, a sure sign of a big hit. Taking Sunday School today with a group of 5 pre-schoolers/Key Stage 1ers we filled in some time at the end putting together the whole story, without having the book. On a par with the Gruffalo and Cooper's Bear Under The Stairs.
Room on a Broom January 3, 2005
L. J. Giddings (Greece)
19 out of 19 found this review helpful
My daughter received this book for christmas and I would urge other parents to buy this book. A lovely rhyming story about a witch, her cat and friends she meets on her broomstick journey. Brilliant use of rhyme, using many 'more grownup' descriptive words regarding the countryside below her; therefore being a book that is appealing to a wider age group, my 5 year old and my 2 year old both enjoyed it; the illustrations are wonderful as well. Great book and perfect length too!
A book to make you chuckle night after night! April 19, 2006
Susana Sassi (Spain)
64 out of 66 found this review helpful
I bought this book a few weeks ago for our little boy of 18 months. I guess if I were to have thought more about it I would have waited a couple of years (a witch and a monster are both mentioned) I am glad I didn't though! He doesn't know what a witch is but he loves the rhymes and even taps the book now for the "taps the broomstick" bit. It is a very well paced story with a lot of characters that even the youngest reader/listener will recognise (cat, dog, bird, frog) and the rhyming is hilarious.
There are few books that our little one will sit through without squirming and getting bored. THis is the longest book by far that I read to him and he is hooked from start to finish. I will certainly be buying more by the same author!
The Joy of Readiing June 22, 2004
39 out of 40 found this review helpful
I am currently using Room on the Broom ' with a few groups of children, all of whom have reading difficulties ( their ages range from 6 to 8 years old ). They have loved this story and the illustrations, we have acted it out, designed our own brooms, decided who we would have on our own brooms ( choices range from a hippopotomus to David Beckham ! ). We have used the rhyme to generate others rhymes and in the spave of just a few sessions the children have turned from reluctant readers and writers , with low self esteem, into eager and more confident learners. This is a great book as it really engages with children and feeds their imagination and they all know it off by heart now but they still demand to read it in full every session. One little girl, who is an elective mute, who has never said anything out loud in a school environment before, suddenly chimed up at the appropriate moment 'Is there room on the broom for a frog like me!'. This says it all.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 159
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