Joan Carris has published more than a dozen books for children as well as four textbooks. She also teaches graduate-level writing at Duke University. She lives in Beaufort, North Carolina.
Rosetta is a cat, a familiar, a witch's familiar, a member of the Greymalkins' Order. She has a new assignment. Gwen is twelve, a regular no nonsense, facts only resident of Ohio. She is also a witch but doesn't know it - yet. Rosetta last had an assignment when people drove horses and carriages. No electricity. No phones. No television. No jets. Welcome to the twentieth century, Rosetta. Welcome to an age when magic must have a scientific explanation. How do you teach a modern girl to believe in magic? Rosetta doesn't know. Her assignment is to do just that. This is a wonderful book. It's a quick read. There are lots of complications. There's a lot of fun.
I read this book many times as a child in the 4th & 5th grade. I don't know how many times I checked this book out from the school library. I don't remember ever wanting to read the same book so many times, either. Great for young readers...just don't forget to introduce them to other well-written stories, as well.
I loved this book as a kid. It was one of my very first forays into the magical, long before I read Tolkien, though I would like to think it readied my for the eventual journey. I think I read this in maybe 3rd grade. It's a little fuzzy but that's about when I really started to get into books.
My daughter read and enjoyed this (though she wished for more out of the ending.) And then I read this.
This is an adorable little book about Rosetta, a witch's familiar and of course, lovable Gwen. Incredibly imaginative and enjoyable. I highly recommend it.
I think I probably read this no less than thirty times between the ages of 8 and 10. I was happy to come across it here because I had completely forgotten about it until I saw the cover.
I probably read this book about 30 times as a child, it's about a girl who is a witch but doesn't know it and so a cat is sent to become her familiar and teach her about her witchy-ness. Delightful!