Fed up with her life and appearance, a witch records all of her troubles in her diary in this rhyming picture-book from Argentina, commenting on everything from her big, bulbous nose to the fact that she'd rather ride in a car with a nice young man, than zip around on her broomstick. But who, she wonders, would fall in love with someone who frightens children and has such terrible breath? Fortunately, the witch still has her cat, concluding that what she really needs is a beach holiday...

Originally published in Spanish as Diario de una bruja, this fun little witchy confection is one of four such fairy-tale diaries from co-authors Valeria Dávila and Mónica López and illustrator Laura Aguerrebehere - the other three are Diary of a Fairy, Diary of a Monster and Diary of an Ogre - to be translated into English by David Warriner for the Montreal-based publisher, CrackBoom! Books. Although the rhyming text in Diary of a Witch is sometimes a little awkward, and the ending here feels a little abrupt, the narrative itself is entertaining, and the artwork delightfully humorous. Readers who enjoy witchy picture-books - a perennial pet project of mine - will find much here to enjoy, and it is to them, as well as to those interested in Argentine children's books, that I would recommend it. ( )

Fun illustrations, and very cute rhymes, but somehow the whole thing felt incomplete.

I received a free copy trough netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

This illustrations in this book are amazing. My grandson loved them and spent time looking at each page and talking about it. This witch is writing in her diary about how she wishes her life were different. She wishes she could get rid of the black clothes, stop riding a broom, find a man etc. One page has a diary post, the page beside illustrates what she is thinking and writing about, it is quite humourous. The flow is a bit stilted, perhaps because it is translated, but that did not bother my grandson at all. The reason I am only giving this book 3 stars is because it does not seem finished. My grandson kept asking me to turn the page and I told him there was no more. He got quite upset and even though he enjoyed what we did read, he was upset by the ending. If there was something added to make the story seem finished, I know it would easily be a 5 star read for us. The publisher, Chouette Publishing - CrackBoom! Books generously provided me a copy of this book to read. ( )

I really hope this is only a partial book, because if this is the full thing, it sucks. The story ends with no warning, which is why I think it’s a sample galley. I can not decide if this is an adult parody book, or a kids picture book. I need an ending to tell me. It goes against what most books try to preach about pretty is on the inside, and be yourself. Once again, i need the ending to form a full picture. Until I get one, this is not a great review, but that’s because the 17 pages I have read so far, are not great. ( )