My Little Witch

AGE: 9 up

In this modern fairytale Yael Rosman depicts a Faustian meeting between a nice Israeli girl and a selfish witch who ensnares her in a spell and takes over her soul.
Tali was a dawdler, an imaginative girl who was constantly late for school, trailed behind on every outing and always lost at games. No wonder they nicknamed her "Tali-Wait-For-Me." And then one day, when she was late for a school outing, Tali met Taluli, a little black-clad witch who lived in an olive tree. Taluli could read minds, because she had a special machine for this purpose, and she also had a sophisticated broom with a miniature engine.
Taluli craftily charmed Tali, helping her gain popularity. She took her for a ride on her broom and brought her to the destination before the other kids. Delighted to arrive ahead of the others, Tali didn`t notice that all sorts of unpleasant things were happening in the village.
"Do you know that you have beautiful eyes?" Taluli complimented Tali one day. The girl felt a chill run down her spine, but the strange drink she had drunk at the witch`s home made her head spin. When Taluli invited Tali to officially join her "club," the girl signed the contract that was placed before her without actually reading it. She didn`t know that Taluli had robbed her of her "inner eyes."
Tali indeed became strong and wicked. She could win at every game and force everyone to do as she wished. But there was a price: her fingernails and teeth turned black, a symptom unknown to the doctor. But what really bothered Tali was the fact that the kids hated her, and the realization that the whole village suffered from her association with Taluli. With the help of her friend Na`amah she manages to overcome the witch and restore order to her world. Better to go back to being "Tali-Wait-For-Me" than to be a wicked witch.


Excerpt in English translation available