This year we planted three pumpkin seeds but we didn’t realise how big pumpkin plants grow (luckily only one plant survived!). We did cut the plant back when it started to grow across our patio and threatened to strangle the tomatoes next to it but although our plant is big it doesn’t look like our pumpkins will be as big as Winnie’s Amazing Pumpkin!
The Story: Winnie the Witch loves vegetables and her favourite vegetable is pumpkin. However, it is difficult for Winnie to carry all her vegetables home from the market on her broomstick so she decides to grow her own. The vegetables grow very slowly so Winnie casts a spell and her vegetables become gigantic, especially the pumpkin which threatens to crush the house. When the giant pumpkin falls off the roof everything returns to its normal size, except the pumpkin. After Winnie has used the pumpkin in all her favourite recipes and given some away she is left with the empty shell. She turns the shell into a mode of transport that will help her carry all of her vegetables home from the market (I won’t give away the ending but it’s very original, highly amusing and involves flying!).
This is one of our favourite Winnie stories and is especially relevant for the pumpkin season and Halloween. Winnie is a great role model in this story as she is portrayed enthusiastically cooking and eating vegetables as well as creating her own vegetable garden. We can completely understand Winnie’s frustration with the caterpillars and snails who eat everything she tries to grow so we think it is hilarious when her spell also makes them larger. Wilbur is very amused by the giant vegetables until he comes face to face with an enormous caterpillar (his fur stands on end in shock and his facial expression is very funny!) but our favourites are the huge rabbits which end up being bigger than cows!
The text and the illustrations in Winnie’s Amazing Pumpkin are highly amusing. Winnie’s intentions are always good when she casts spells but they don’t always work out as they should which adds to the humour. In this story the familiar situations of shopping and gardening are given a magical twist and we love Winnie’s final spell which transforms the pumpkin into a………..!
Winnie the Witch has her own website with more information about books and activities.
Age Range: 3 +
Author: Valerie Thomas / Illustrator: Korky Paul
by Valerie Thomas [Oxford University Press]
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$30.20
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· $13.81
More autumn / fall books, learning activities and arts and crafts suggestions on Pinterest
This was the very first Winnie the Witch book we read (late discoverers!) and fell in love with it quickly. The phrase “Wilbur helped” is often used in our household 😉
Better late than never! We find Wilbur’s ‘help’ very amusing too 🙂
Those pumpkin vines sure do spread out and take up a lot of space, which is the reason I can’t grow my own.
We won’t be growing a pumpkin in this garden again, we’ll be back to carrots again next year 🙂
Just stopping in from the Kid Lit Blog Hop – I don’t think I’ve come across Winnie the witch before, so thanks for introducing us!
There are lots of Winnie the Witch stories, she’s a lovely witch but her spells often cause chaos! Thank you for visiting Story Snug 🙂
This sounds like such a great book for the season for young kids. Thanks for sharing it on KidLit Blog Hop.
Winnie does use the pumpkin shell in a very unusual way, it’s a very amusing story 🙂
My kids are huge fans of Winnie and we haven’t read this one. Will have to go on the must get list in time for Halloween. I’ll just have to plan the excuses beforehand why we can’t grow any pumpkins this year.
You can also read the the free ebook of Winnie’s Amazing Pumpkin on the Oxford Owl website – http://www.oxfordowl.co.uk/home/reading-owl/find-a-book/library-page 🙂
Love the theme of the book Catherine! I have yet to read a book in this series, but can imagine that DD would love it! I am going to try this as a read aloud for the little ones classroom! Thanks for sharing on Kid Lit Blog Hop!
-Reshama @StackingBooks.com
Winnie is one of my long term favourite characters 🙂 Have fun reading it in class.
What a great book. Just in time for Halloween. Winnie sounds like a fun character. Thanks for sharing on the Kid Lit Blog Hop. Cheryl, Hop Hostess.
It’s the perfect combination for Halloween – a witch and a pumpkin 🙂
I haven’t run across this series before. I’m sure my daughter would have loved the Winnie the Witch stories when she was younger. This is a perfect choice for the fall as well. Thanks for sharing in the Kid Lit Blog Hop.
Winnie the Witch has been a favourite of mine since the very first book came out, now my daughter loves her too.
Our youth group grew some pumpkins from last year’s pumpkin seeds. Unfortunately the slugs ate the plants before they flowered, so it’s back to bought ones this year. I think the kids still young enough to admire magic pumpkins, though!
I would have been happy if the slugs had nibbled our pumpkins just a little bit!