The Witch Herself

Witch Saga #3

by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

From the shadows
of the pool,
Black as midnight,
thick as gruel...
Is Mrs. Tuggle a witch? Lynn and Mouse are sure she is - how else can you explain the frightening things that have been taking place over the past several months?
Now Lynn's mom is planning to move her writing studio into Mrs. Tuggle's house for the winter, and Lynn can't imagine a more dangerous situation. If she and Mouse don't do something, there's no telling what horrifying things may happen. They've got to save lynn's mom before Mrs. Tuggle strikes again -- but how?

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Young Adult, Childrens, Witches, Middle Grade, Mystery

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor was born in Anderson, Indiana, US on January 4, 1933.

Her family were strongly religious with conservative, midwestern values and most of her childhood was spent moving a lot due to her father's occupation as a salesman.

Though she grew up during the Depression and her family did not have a lot of money, Naylor stated that she never felt poor because her family owned good books. Her parents enjoyed reading stories to the children--her father would imitate the characters in Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer--and her mother read to them every evening, "almost until we were old enough to go out on dates, though we never would have admitted this to anyone."

By the time Phyllis reached fifth grade, writing books was her favorite hobby and she would rush home from school each day to write down whatever plot had been forming in her head - at sixteen her first story was published in a local church magazine.

Phyllis has written over 80 books for children and young people. One of these books, "Shiloh," was awarded the Newbery Medal in 1992, was named a Notable Children's Book by the American Library Association and was also Young Adult Choice by the International Reading Association.

Naylor gets her ideas from things that happen to her or from things she has read. "Shiloh" was inspired by a little abused dog she and her husband found. The little dog haunted her so much that she had to write a story about him to get it out of her mind.

Reviews

[Canni · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favorite, if I remember correctly. Very intense and scary for a 11-12 year-old. Great series!

[Anne White]

A series I did not share with my own kids: scared the pants off me at eleven or twelve. Too well written is not always a good thing.

[Emma Thingsted · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scared the crap out of me as a kid, and still creepy today!

[L.E. Fidler · Rating 3 out of 5]

ok, so, you know when you were reading Fifty Shades of Grey and you started thinking about how christian grey hits like ALL the trademark red flags for serial killers?

lynn kills a cat in this book.

i mean, that's not exactly what happens, but it's close. she kidnaps (catnaps?) mrs. tuggle's familiar and then it dies while in captivity.

that's kind of fucked, no?

also, and not really as concerning but still an issue, mouse reads one chapter of a book and suddenly becomes a master hypnotist?

no wonder i had delusions of my prowess after reading books as a kid.

this one is the weakest in the series for me (well, to date, in this weird rereading fit i'm having). maybe i'm just in a bad mood, though.

or maybe i'm the witch herself.

[P.A. Pursley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Third book in the Witch Saga that began with Witch's Sister. These are elementary level books and I chose to read them again because I read them when I was in elementary school and wanted to pass them onto my grandchildren.

This book finds Lynn and Mouse convinced that Mrs. Tuggle, the old lady that Lynn and Mouse are convinced is a witch, is after Lynn's mother. She finds help in her best friend, Marjorie, Mouse, and her sister who was able to break away from Mrs. Tuggle's spell in Witch's Sister.

If you have read Witch's Sister, I encourage you to continue with the series.

[Judy Zingher · Rating 5 out of 5]

The issue with the first in the series is that the kids know something true and scary, and the adults don't believe them. That is still not totally resolved, but the scary parts are acknowledged by the "all-powerful" adults, who turn out to be not so all-powerful.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this trilogy! Highly recommended for kids and adults who like a good scare!

[Vintagebooklvr · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good slow build of creepiness and horror. There is never exact proof of the supernatural but it isn't disproved either. I enjoyed the series.

[Jenny Skinner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still re-read this trilogy every halloween. The scene in the basement scared the crap out of me when I was a kid and still creeps me out today.

[Lone Marquard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Letlæst og uhyggelig. Fint skrevet ungdomsbog.

[Amy Senter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read through this series when I was in middle school and reading it as an adult, it is still just as good! The Witch Herself is the third out of six and leaves you to wonder what will happen next. Can't wait to start the next one!

[robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

one of my childhood favorites

[Alissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Satisfyingly spooky end to Reynolds' Witch trilogy.

[Partridge Public]

Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds

[Jeannie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this series, it was a relaxing entertaining read. I would highly recommend this for girls 10 - 13.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite books as a kid. I plan to retread the trilogy!!

[Lisa the Tech · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read this since I was a kid but I will never forget the chills it gave me. A very good book.

[Carterkempgmail.Com · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scary. Not quite horror, but definitely one for the kids who like to be scared. A little dated in the treatment of witchcraft (now that Wicca is a respected philosophy).