Timothy and Two Witches

Timothy

by Margaret Storey

The first book in Margaret Storey's delicious series for younger children about the adventures of Timothy and Ellen with Melinda the White Witch.

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens, Magic, Adventure, 20th Century

76 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1974

About the author

Margaret Storey is the author of several books for children. Neil Gaiman has cited her as an influence: "Margaret Storey is more or less out of print these days, alas. I loved her when I was about seven or eight, and am looking forward to finding out how much of her stuff has wound up in mine."

Jill Staynes and Margaret Storey write under the pen names Susannah Stacey and Elizabeth Eyre.
Jill Staynes and Margaret Storey have written many books together, but the Elizabeth Eyre pen name seems only to have been used for the Sigismondo series of novels.

She lived in south west London

Reviews

[Capn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know I gush about this series endlessly, but I can't help it - I think they're as perfect as they come. I'll just start with what you might need to know, first:
- they are long out of print
- they DO come up with some regularity (over the past few years, anyway), though they are quite scarce
- they were published in the UK, so if you're not there, shipping's a thing...
- they are probably not as expensive as you fear they might be (int'l shipping aside) - I have found the first three books at various times from WOB (formerly "World of Books") for about 3.50 GBP (about $4.30 US) in 'good' or 'acceptable' condition
- I've yet to see any of the others in the series (books 4 - 7) for sale, and I'm not afraid to use lethal force to get them, so back off! XD Just kidding. Seriously, buy these whenever you can. More on 'reading order' in a moment!

They are short paperbacks, under a hundred pages, so they can get a little ragged, but so long as they're saleable, I say POUNCE on whatever you can find, and either resell your ratty copies later or give them to OpenLibrary to scan, so others can enjoy these. ;)

I acquired mine in a funny order - book 2 (Stone Wizard), then book 3 The Dragon's Sister and Timothy Travels), and finally book 1 (this one, Timothy and Two Witches). I read them as they came in, too, and the reading order didn't really seem to matter too much, so long as you aren't bothered by that nagging feeling that there was a good story on how that person was turned into a dragon, or why that person went straight, and you're missing out. Storey makes certain that all of her Timothy stories (at least the ones I can speak to, 1-3) are immediately enjoyable.

Case in point, this is how book 1 begins:

Timothy put his hand into Miss Melinda's quite easily, although he had only just met her. She was the right sort of person. Timothy's mother had said that he was sure to enjoy staying with Miss Melinda but he had been doubtful. Now he felt more sure.
Miss Melinda smiled down at him as if she liked him. "We get on a bus first," she said.
On the bus something a little peculiar happened. Miss Melinda had Timothy's suitcase on her lap, and her hands lay on it quite empty, with no purse. When the conductor came along the bus saying, "Ennimofase please?" she handed him several pennies.
"One and a half to the New Moon, please."
Timothy did not see where she had got the pennies from. The bus ride was not long; they soon climbed down, and walked.
"Is it far, Miss Melinda?" Timothy hoped his suitcase was not too heavy for her. It had Scotty, the special dog he slept with, and his paint box, as well as clothes.
"No, not very far. You must call me Melinda. I don't feel old enough for 'Miss' yet."
One is not supposed to ask women how old they are, but of course there is not harm in wondering. Timothy looked at her thoughtfully. It was true that she was the young sort of grown-up.
"All right, Melinda," he said.
They turned along a quiet little street with tall hedges on both sides and tall gates in the hedges. They went in a blue gate and up a flagged path to a blue front door. Melinda put out her hand and pushed the door open, and it squeaked gently.
"Don't you keep your door shut?"
"No."
"Wouldn't robbers be able to get in?"
"The door only opens for me. Or for you. Put your hand on it now while mine's there. Now you have only to say 'Please' and this or any door of mine will open for you."
"Will they really? All of them?" In the hall there were three blue doors, two on the right and one straight ahead. None of them had handles.
"All of them."

Skipping ahead a page or two,

One of the doors downstairs was open too, and he went in. It was the kitchen. Melinda was there, sitting with her feet on the fender, watching a kettle pour boiling water into the yellow teapot. Timothy watched too, with his eyes rather wide. Melinda paid no attention to his wonder; her hair was curling up a little on her shoulders as if there were a breeze blowing it.
"How does the kettle do that by itself?"
"Oh, just magic, " she answered. Timothy watched as the teapot balanced through the air to a tray that was laid out for tea. The tray lifted itself up and sailed over Timothy's head and out through the door. Another of the blue doors in the hall opened for it.
Melinda stood up; her hair was definitely blowing about now as if there were a wind, but Timothy could not feel any wind at all. He took the hand she held out to him and went with her, very interested indeed, after the tray.
The carpet was thick, like grass, and the wallpaper had leaves all over it. However, it was the table he looked at, where the cups and saucers and plates that had been on the tray were placing themselves on the yellow cloth.
Melinda picked up a chair for herself and put it before the table, so Timothy did the same, going to the place that had been laid opposite her, and they sat down. Melinda poured out the tea.
"How does the magic work?" asked Timothy.
"It's because I am lazy. I make magic do things I don't feel like doing. It took a long time to learn the magic, of course, but it was worth it; although magic is work, in its way, too, it's a different kind of work, and a change is as good as a holiday, you know."
"Are you a fairy?"
"No, a white witch. Have another strawberry, you've only got two on that bread."

It's not the most exciting start, but you see how the details of Timothy's visit and the arrangement and relationship between Melinda and his mother is completely skipped - kids don't care about the whys. There's a line in the next book, I believe, that suggests that Timothy's mother knew Melinda when his mother was a child as well. But again, why dwell on that when there's ACTION to be had!

I know I haven't chosen the exciting bits at all above, but in very short time there's an enchanted garden and maze, a black witch who turns children into cockroaches (or dogs), some sort of leprechauns or gnome-like people, the Open Country (which we see more of later in the series), folk magic in the form of ash keys (similar to maple keys, if you don't have ash trees near you) and Rowan twigs (a.k.a. Mountain Ash) and red wool (or blood-stained denim, in this case...), a showdown between two witches, illuminated bluebells and oranges, a sapling that flowers personalized iced cakes for tea, boat beds that go to sea, summer in the winter, and a new friend in the newly-arrived girl at the house next door, Ellen.

It has occurred to me, and for the first time, that Melinda is not unlike Samantha Stevens from the U.S. TV series Bewitched in looks as well as general deportment, and this story was published first in 1966, some scant two years after the (U.S.) debut of Bewitched. I don't know if Margaret Storey had seen that sitcom, being British and all, but no doubt she was at least indirectly inspired by it. And not a bad thing. For apart from the young, hot, blonde white witch living on her own in the 1960s, the similarities end there, because most of these action-heavy adventure stories take place either in the Open Country (outside of our mundane world), or are concerned with some serious fantasy elements. I liked Bewitched, but suburban witchiness only gets us so far. If you want dragons and magicians duelling, you've got to get out of the real world.. ;)

Of the three I've read, this was the least exciting (you saw all the dull bits above - the others dive in quicker!), but there were still so many magical moments. Like the others, I feel that these stories might tend towards the 'scary', especially given the sedate beginning. The black witch in this one is quite fearful, and the drawings don't help! Without too much of a spoiler, all of these stories have a reformative theme in re: the villains, so all's well that ends well, and you will often see the villain from the previous book as an ally in the next, for example. But there are still some conceptually tough things, like the children who were turned into cockroaches centuries and generations before, if the young reader or audience cares to reflect upon their fortunes (they might not - like I said, magic food, daring rescues, dragons as sails... more important things to focus on!). Spoiler follows for app users: I guess "the Lost Boys" in Peter Pan are a bit sad, too - missing children who never get home, in a way. Maybe it takes an adult's perspective to see that, though.. Book two (The Dragon's Sister and Timothy Travels) has a quite violent and frightening scene, so be forewarned. :)

These books are, to my mind, a worthwhile investment if you can get them. I've read quite a lot of vintage witchy fiction, to my surprise (didn't realise it was a genre I liked until I saw how much of it I've read!), and I've dicussed and compared this series with other retro witchy children's reads here: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... ("Out of Print Witches Worth Hunting Down" on Forgotten Vintage Children's Lit We Want Republished!). If you can't be bothered to read more, this is the series that hits the top of the list for me. :) WHY THEY HAVEN'T BEEN REPUBLISHED IS A COMPLETE MYSTERY!

[CLM · Rating 3 out of 5]

When Timothy goes to stay with Melinda, his life takes a magical turn because she is a white witch with doors that open by themselves, dragons in the garden, summer when it is winter everywhere else, but most fortunately, he finds a new friend, Ellen, to explore with!

for an audience of 2nd or 3rd grade

[Laura Morrigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favourite, I loved the magic of this book. Beautiful, and at times a little scary, but not too scary for young readers. The imagery of the illuminated forest in the last chapter has stayed with me.

[Kate Sherrod · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful story that I feel like I still had memorized from reading it to pieces in my childhood. I had so throughly forgotten the author/title , though, that I'd almost convinced myself I just imagined it. Bought this to donate to local kids but wanted to read it again one more time. Plus, there are sequels that I have never even known of!

[Carlotta · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
I found this book on my shelf, no idea where it came from. I don't know why anyone would buy it either, the edition I have has an atrocious excuse for a cover. But it was there, so I gave it a read.
It is a pleasant little book. We are dropped by little Timmy's side, who is staying with the white witch Melinda. The reason for this is never explained, which irked me not, though I did believe she'd kidnapped him or something at first, and one tends to expect a sentence that says something along the line of "he was spending his holidays in the countryside" or something like that (though, of course, Melindas house is in London, if I remember correctly, so perhaps his parents thought the smog would be a nice change for little Timmy's lungs. Or they did know that Melinda was a witch and her ability to turn winter in summer, and also having a whole country at the back of her garden).

Sorry tangent.

Speaking about tangents, right at the beginning, there is this terribly long and pointless tangent that has Timothy reading a harry-potter-style-moving-picture version of the 12 princesses. Every single page is described; not just the way the images move, but the actual story line as well, with all the important details.

Even if this had been important later on, it went on for much to long, and was a terribly uninteresting read, whether you know the 12 princesses or not (as a young child I did really love this fairy tale). I'm still not sure why it was included; there were some crude and some blatant call backs to this story, particularly at the climax - a boat ride, some jaunty dancing, and the silver-gold-and-diamond trees, but I didn't see the point in this comparison. Either way, the tale was too long.
The writing itself is to-the-point. Melinda's house imaginative and fun. I'm not sure of the wider literacy around the time of 1966, but I imagine it was quite innovative back then, at least more than it would be now. The resolution of the book is a tad confusing; as Melinda gives the black witch a choice to either lose her magical powers promise only to use them for good. The black witch refuses, Melinda makes it rain, and then they all dance, and the black witch says she needs to go clean out her house. One _assumes_ she's good now, I guess?

Also, Melinda says that learning to be a witch is a long and difficult process. She scoffs a bit at the black witch for using a spell book (geesh Melinda, not all of us have a brilliant memory); but it seems as though this memorization is the only difficult part of being a witch - as Timothy, when his discovers this spell book, reads two spells, commits them to memory, and sues both successfully within the same day. So can anyone just cast spells then? Is this why Melinda doesn't have a spell book, so that no one else can do magic? Or is Timothy special in some way? Is magic sexist and is only hard for girls? Ellen never casts a spell, though one might expect that after doing/witnessing magic, both she and Timothy should be clamoring to learn this stuff. I mean it's seriously cool.

Ellen was a bit of a wimp though, so perhaps magic frightened her. Her role in the story consists of being kidnapped, rescued, and being frightened of a terrier-sized dragon. The last bit in particular put me off her somewhat. Oh, and she grazes her knee and conveniently bleeds onto her sock (as a red thread was needed for a spell).

Timothy is a typical bland heroic little boy, which just enough in-text quirks to make him likeable, and act as a decent vessel the reader might project themselves on.

Melinda, as already stated; a fun enough character, mostly expressed through her house, and the drawings, which I feel characterize her quite a big (I might add that quite the cover offends the eye, the pictures inside were quite pretty. In fact, there's a picture just inside the cover which would've made a marvelous cover picture itself, but, oh well).

The Black Witch was actually one of my favourite characters. The first we hear of her is that she has been away visiting her sister for the past 20 years, and "I [Til] don't suppose either of them have stopped talking in all that time". There is something deeply charming about this characterization. Her hate for children hints at some interesting event in her past (as she goes out of her way to seek them out), she has a sharp sense of smell, and a one-room house, that has dusted over in the years she's been away. Her trick to get around Melinda's superior magic to kidnap Ellen is rather ingenious and delightful.

Til, Dag and Rik have very little involvement int he story, in fact, I'm not entirely sure why Til was even present at the climax. They gave a little more colour to the world, and they little home was neat, I guess. I am aware that this is a series of books, and that these places and characters will probably be recurring, but wish that they'd all been in one larger book. I can see how the safe haven of Melinda's eccentric home can form a great home-base, and the country beyond Melinda's garden an exciting magical world, and such, for recurring adventures, much like The Adventures of the Wishing Chair; but just on by itself this book is a little lonely.

[Hecka · Rating 2 out of 5]

What are the odds that J.K. Rowling was read these stories as a child?

[Ketutar Jensen · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's a short story and very sweet :-)
Timothy goes to visit a witch, meets her neighbors, and adventures happen. This book is full of lovely magic, and it has a happy ending. It's short enough to be a good night story, and I'm sure would promote wonderful dreams.

[Ajaki · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read to me

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember the day I picked this book out - it changed the way I read books. I did not enjoy reading when I was little, until I found this magical gem. I picked it up and never put it down. To this day I read it at least once a year. It takes no more than an hour or so, but it is a portal to my childhood. I am saddened that it is no longer in print and honored that I still have a copy.

I reread this again in 2020 to my third-graders. I enjoy it more each time and so did my kiddos!

[Tessa Francine · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the children books I have kept from my childhood and will read to my children, and my children's children...

[Sangeetha · Rating 3 out of 5]

More than 2 years since I read this book, I don't remember much but it was awesome!!!!

[Heidi Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

A childhood favorite . . . and I just found my copy in a box in the attic! Time for a reread.