What do you think?
Rate this book
Catweazle #1
Catweazle
Catweazle is a magician from the eleventh century who had trouble making his spells work. One day, all that changed, thanks to a bad dream and the hooting of an owl, and some ferocious Norman soldiers. The magic Catweazle used that day was unlike any other: it worked. The only trouble was it sped him through the centuries into 1970s Britain. There, by good fortune, he befriended a farmer's son, Carrot, and began the process of adjusting - or not - to modern life. How Catweazle manages to deal with cars and telephones and electricity (or 'electrickery', as he calls it) made for hilarious viewing on the LWT TV series and wickedly funny reading in the Puffin novelisation. And here it is again, for older readers to rediscover and as a timeless treat for children today.
224 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1969
14 people are currently reading
90 people want to read
About the author
Richard Carpenter
132 books11 followersRichard Michael "Kip" Carpenter (14 August 1929 – 26 February 2012) was an English screenwriter, author, and actor who created a number of British television series, including Robin of Sherwood and Catweazle.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
June 7, 2022
Catweazle resembles Gerald Gardner. Witchcraft Today is even mentioned in the book!
July 16, 2018
Having loved the TV show, I was thoroughly enchanted by this book which follows the plot of the first series. It is written in a gentle style, suitable for the children for whom it was intended, but is not patronising and involves enough plays on words and double meanings to appeal to older readers too. There are also a whole raft of highly entertaining insults that deserve to be more widely used. There are some nice illustrations in my edition, which really capture Geoffrey Bayldon - the lovely character actor who brought Catweazle to life on screen.
Whiist the series goes back to the 70s, the stories themselves are not overtly bound by that time and so I imagine that many young readers these days would also enjoy the tales. The character of the Saxon wizard Catweazle is an irascible old sod, but very endearing and the amount of folk magic weaved through this book - as with so many of Richard Carpenter's works - evinces a real love of that whole world of lore and tradition and native mysticism.
I would certainly recommend this book to any pagan parents wanting a gentle and humorous way to introduce their kids to the idea of folk belief and native mysticism.
Whiist the series goes back to the 70s, the stories themselves are not overtly bound by that time and so I imagine that many young readers these days would also enjoy the tales. The character of the Saxon wizard Catweazle is an irascible old sod, but very endearing and the amount of folk magic weaved through this book - as with so many of Richard Carpenter's works - evinces a real love of that whole world of lore and tradition and native mysticism.
I would certainly recommend this book to any pagan parents wanting a gentle and humorous way to introduce their kids to the idea of folk belief and native mysticism.
May 9, 2018
It was amazing enough that I bought a copy for myself when I was young and I still have it and read it today. The TV series was almost as good. Very few books can balance the illogic of time travel compounded with the vast cultural gulfs between cultures then and now and do it with grace and compassion for the characters. Very few time time travel stories do it as well as this one.
July 15, 2018
Funny story. About a year ago I was reading a history of the British folk-rock movement of the sixties, and came across a reference to a TV show called Catweazle. "That would be a great name for a cat!" I thought and wrote it on the whiteboard on my fridge, where it still remains to this day. (We didn't use it for our new kittens.) Fast forward to a few weeks ago when I was talking about Lloyd Alexander's Prydain Chronicles with a like-minded coworker, and he asked me, "Have you ever heard of Catweazle?" He was flabbergasted when I told him I had, and that it was in fact written on my fridge. I had to send him a picture to prove it.
OK, the book. It was written after the TV show was a hit, so it had that feel to it. Each chapter was an episode. That said, the writing was good and the episodes were funny. The humor all revolved around an eccentric wizard (Catweazle) who is a failure at magic most of the time, except that one time when he is trying to escape Norman soldiers and accidentally falls through time 900 years into the future. He meets a British boy around 1970, and hilarity around the many misunderstandings ensue. It's a plot that we've seen a million times -- I Dream of Jeannie, My Favorite Martian, etc. etc. and since we are almost 50 years beyond that now, the jokes feel a little time-worn and even irrelevant. But it was still fun, especially when Catweazle spewed Medieval insults at the clueless modern-day Brits. It's an amusing take-off on the time travel trope.
OK, the book. It was written after the TV show was a hit, so it had that feel to it. Each chapter was an episode. That said, the writing was good and the episodes were funny. The humor all revolved around an eccentric wizard (Catweazle) who is a failure at magic most of the time, except that one time when he is trying to escape Norman soldiers and accidentally falls through time 900 years into the future. He meets a British boy around 1970, and hilarity around the many misunderstandings ensue. It's a plot that we've seen a million times -- I Dream of Jeannie, My Favorite Martian, etc. etc. and since we are almost 50 years beyond that now, the jokes feel a little time-worn and even irrelevant. But it was still fun, especially when Catweazle spewed Medieval insults at the clueless modern-day Brits. It's an amusing take-off on the time travel trope.
March 30, 2024
I loved revisiting my childhood, and enjoying the escapades of Catweazle.
To step back and hear the words of electrickery and curses like mouldwarp, demigorgpn and the chant of Salmat, Dalmay, Adony was really delightful.
I would have liked some more details on the end of each misadventure as it seemed like not all was revealed each chapter.
I am sure it was because the book was based on a TV series.
Despite this it’s a lot of old fashioned good fun !
To step back and hear the words of electrickery and curses like mouldwarp, demigorgpn and the chant of Salmat, Dalmay, Adony was really delightful.
I would have liked some more details on the end of each misadventure as it seemed like not all was revealed each chapter.
I am sure it was because the book was based on a TV series.
Despite this it’s a lot of old fashioned good fun !
May 3, 2021
I recently watched both series of Catweazle in full, having not seen the show for years, and I'd forgotten how good it was! It's an absolute classic of childrens' TV, and after watching it, I thought I'd give this book a go.
Catweazle was made in 1969 and 1970, and I wasn't born until 1974, but it was regularly repeated during my childhood, and as far as I can remember, I saw quite a few episodes, and read the novelisation of the second series, when I was about nine. This is the novel of the first series, which having watched recently, I'd argue is much better than the second.
The basic plot is that Catweazle is an ancient wizard, who while being chased by Norman soldiers, accidentally casts a spell transporting him to a farm in the twentieth century. He befriends a teenage boy who has to try and keep him hidden, and Catweazle struggles enormously to cope with modern technology, mistaking it (of course) for powerful magic.
The show is very fondly remembered, and deservedly so. This is a very straightforward retelling of the series, pretty much following the script word for word, but including a few extra things. In the show, it's never explained where Carrot's mother is, and the book explains that she died the year before. There's a few other little details in here that make the show make a bit more sense.
The book lacks Geoffrey Bayldon's fantastic acting, of course, but it's well written and certainly never patronises its intended young audience. Great fun.
They don't make 'em like this any more!
Catweazle was made in 1969 and 1970, and I wasn't born until 1974, but it was regularly repeated during my childhood, and as far as I can remember, I saw quite a few episodes, and read the novelisation of the second series, when I was about nine. This is the novel of the first series, which having watched recently, I'd argue is much better than the second.
The basic plot is that Catweazle is an ancient wizard, who while being chased by Norman soldiers, accidentally casts a spell transporting him to a farm in the twentieth century. He befriends a teenage boy who has to try and keep him hidden, and Catweazle struggles enormously to cope with modern technology, mistaking it (of course) for powerful magic.
The show is very fondly remembered, and deservedly so. This is a very straightforward retelling of the series, pretty much following the script word for word, but including a few extra things. In the show, it's never explained where Carrot's mother is, and the book explains that she died the year before. There's a few other little details in here that make the show make a bit more sense.
The book lacks Geoffrey Bayldon's fantastic acting, of course, but it's well written and certainly never patronises its intended young audience. Great fun.
They don't make 'em like this any more!
November 28, 2023
One of the seminal television programs of my long ago childhood was the British program ‘Catweazle’. The story of an 11th century wizard who is transported magically to an English farm in the early 1970s, it was gentle, funny, a tad educational and much loved by yours truly. The creator of the TV show was Richard Carpenter, and thankfully not only did he produce the program, he also wrote the two novelisations. Written with the same lightly humorous touch as the show’s scripts, this book faithfully follows the narrative of the TV show, whilst also adding some delightful drawings by George Adamson. Of course my review is biased by my nostalgia, yet I would suggest that if Harry Potter tickles your reading fancy, then Catweazle would be a wonderful supplement to those tales of wizardry and adventure.
The core premise of Catweazle is that the eponymous magician is a fish out of water, and as he tries to navigate his time in 1970s England he must avoid attention and find a way back home. Catweazle strikes up a friendship with Carrot, a boy who lives with his widowed father at Hexwood Farm, and as the story develops the two experience a series of mishaps and misadventures that are gently comical. Carpenter is not shy of poking fun at Catweazle’s idiosyncrasies. He is also happy to making some slightly satirical digs at the more contemporary world of Carrot and others that the two encounter.
There’s no point trying to make more of Catweazle than what it is, I.e. a novelisation of a TV show produced over 50 years ago. Carpenter’s writing is spot on and the only (exceedingly mild) criticism one could make us it’s a shame that the author couldn’t have produced more original stories about Catweazle. Having said that, what is there in this book and in the TV series is great fun, very imaginative and even a little moving.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves an imaginative children’s story, no matter the reader’s age.
The core premise of Catweazle is that the eponymous magician is a fish out of water, and as he tries to navigate his time in 1970s England he must avoid attention and find a way back home. Catweazle strikes up a friendship with Carrot, a boy who lives with his widowed father at Hexwood Farm, and as the story develops the two experience a series of mishaps and misadventures that are gently comical. Carpenter is not shy of poking fun at Catweazle’s idiosyncrasies. He is also happy to making some slightly satirical digs at the more contemporary world of Carrot and others that the two encounter.
There’s no point trying to make more of Catweazle than what it is, I.e. a novelisation of a TV show produced over 50 years ago. Carpenter’s writing is spot on and the only (exceedingly mild) criticism one could make us it’s a shame that the author couldn’t have produced more original stories about Catweazle. Having said that, what is there in this book and in the TV series is great fun, very imaginative and even a little moving.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves an imaginative children’s story, no matter the reader’s age.
Read
October 28, 2017Whilst looking for something to read, I came across this - which I'd enjoyed watching on TV as a kid.
I hardly ever read YA, and this would be for younger kids, so I have no idea how children's books are written these days, or if the style has changed much.
If it had been written for a YA audience, I would say there was far too much head hopping and 'tell' instead of 'show' but maybe that was more usual for children's books written back in the 1970s. Having said that, I enjoyed it. It brought back the TV series so well, I could almost see it - although maybe that was more the nostalgia than the quality of the writing. Nevertheless, I did enjoy it - it was fun.
I hardly ever read YA, and this would be for younger kids, so I have no idea how children's books are written these days, or if the style has changed much.
If it had been written for a YA audience, I would say there was far too much head hopping and 'tell' instead of 'show' but maybe that was more usual for children's books written back in the 1970s. Having said that, I enjoyed it. It brought back the TV series so well, I could almost see it - although maybe that was more the nostalgia than the quality of the writing. Nevertheless, I did enjoy it - it was fun.
February 12, 2020
Never read this book as a kid even though I enjoyed watching Catweazle in my youth. With the recent showing of the old series on Talking pictures TV, of which I loved, I had to buy the book.
Every episode from the first series is in the book and it made me laugh out loud just like the series did. A fun read and if you have happy memories of Catweazle, then it's a must read. Now I will have to purchase the second book. Five stars indeed!
Every episode from the first series is in the book and it made me laugh out loud just like the series did. A fun read and if you have happy memories of Catweazle, then it's a must read. Now I will have to purchase the second book. Five stars indeed!
July 11, 2021
This is the novelization of the complete first season of "Catweazle". A rather inept Norman magician is thrown 900 years forward in time, where he confuses modern science with ancient magic. He struggles to understand "elec-trickery" and other inventions beyond his knowledge, and to try and return to his own time. Naturally, he gets into many amusing adventures, with the aid of his new friend Carrot. Lots of fun.
March 5, 2025
This is a fun children's book that can be read and enjoyed by adults. It follows the adventures of Catweazle and each chapter shows an entertaining event that he and his friend Carrot have while he searches for the way to get home. I liked revisiting this book as an adult and will pass it on to be enjoyed by child who is starting to read novels.
Read
February 15, 2021It is always nice reread this funny book about a timetravelling sorcerer. I always and enjoy his adventures in the twenieth century, where everybody is a wizard. At least, that is what he thinks, coming from the tenth century. Then is 'electrickery' really magic.
February 23, 2020
Got this book for my nieces. I hope they like it.
November 21, 2015
Read this one to my son and we had great fun.
I remember watching the TV series in the 80's. We watched the first couple of episodes on youtube. This is one of those instances where the book adds quite a bit in terms of colour and information that you don't get in the TV show.
Some of the chapters/episodes are fairly average but that's more than offset by the better ones - especially the classic one with the Telling Bone. Much hilarity.
I remember watching the TV series in the 80's. We watched the first couple of episodes on youtube. This is one of those instances where the book adds quite a bit in terms of colour and information that you don't get in the TV show.
Some of the chapters/episodes are fairly average but that's more than offset by the better ones - especially the classic one with the Telling Bone. Much hilarity.
April 4, 2017
Read this multiple times as a child and have revisited it a couple of times as an adult. The concept here is very simple: bring a character from the distant past to experience modern life. An old comedic premise but it has been used in a good way here.
For a young adult book, “Catweazle” is reasonably smart and clever, enough to make me forgive the goofiness of the actual plot. And the novel offers some nice depiction of everyday life through its nicely built characters.
For a young adult book, “Catweazle” is reasonably smart and clever, enough to make me forgive the goofiness of the actual plot. And the novel offers some nice depiction of everyday life through its nicely built characters.
Read
September 24, 2012 My dad read it to me and my brother. I liked it, it´s kind of funny. Noone belive catweazle, that he is a true magican, while he thinks, that all this mostly technical things we know from today are magic.
January 21, 2014
An amusing diversion. I'm still not sure how I feel about Catweazle, and the ending seemed somehow sudden and unsatisfying, but perhaps that is to pave the way for later adventures. Time to look up some old episodes of the tv programme and see how they compare.
March 3, 2014
Catweazle, a Saxon magician from medieval times, is accidentally transported to modern England. Here he is taken in by young "Carrot," a farm boy. Catweazle continually mistakes modern technology for magic and comedy ensues.
Read
August 23, 2008isbn,original
May 25, 2016
I read and re-read this about ten times, one time after another.
July 13, 2013
This novel is based on the classic children's TV series of the same name. Essentially it is a novelisation of the first season. The TV series is more entertaining, but this was well worth the read.
May 7, 2016
The book is OK but the real magic is in the TV version. All time classic.
January 4, 2017
I just loved this book, and the TV series, as an 11 year old. Richard Carpenter has written a few books, and writes well. Electrickery, the telling bone and other clever stuff!
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews