Only a Witch Can Fly

Alison McGhee; Illustrated by Taeeun Yoo

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Only a witch can fly.
 
But one little girl wants to fly—more than anything. So on a special night, with the moon shining bright and her cat by her side, she gathers herself up, she grips her broom tight, and she tries. And she fails. And she’s brave. And she tries again. Until . . .
 
Utterly enchanting, New York Times best-selling author Alison McGhee’s lyrical language and Taeeun Yoo’s transcendent linoleum block prints create a bewitching tale about finding one’s own path that will send your heart soaring.
 
Only a Witch Can Fly is a 2010 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

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Book Excerpts

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If you were a young witch, who had not yet flown,
And the dark night sky held a round yellow moon
 
and the moon shone her light on the silent broom
and the dark cat beside you crooned, Soar,
 
would you too begin to cry,
because of your longing to fly?
 
Only a witch can fly.

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Reviews

Praise for Only a Witch Can Fly

Praise for Only a Witch Can Fly:

“The effortless quiet of McGhee’s words is beautifully matched by Yoo’s pictures. …There’s more than enough magic in these pages…for young readers and for their parents, who might otherwise give up on finding anything truly enchanting about Halloween.”—The New York Times Book Review

“It’s an enchanting book that makes a compelling point about the perseverance needed to follow your dreams. It’s not hard to imagine such a potent message resonating with young readers this Halloween”—BookPage

“This sophisticated picture book is rich with imagination… More personal, quiet, and transcendent than most Halloween books, this is not a call to witchcraft, but rather to following one’s heart.”—Booklist
 
“Like its protagonist, this book soars.”—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
 
“This gentle, lyrical tale, written in the unusual poetic stanzas of a medieval sestina, recounts a young trick-or-treater’s dogged attempts to make her dreams of flight come true. …This is a quieter, more reflective addition to Halloween collections that offers an enchanting storytime read-aloud.”—School Library Journal
 
“Beneath the vintage spooky setting lies a subtle message about perseverance and individuality.”—Publishers Weekly
 

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About the Author

Alison McGhee; Illustrated by Taeeun Yoo

Alison McGhee is the award-winning author of numerous books for children and adults, including the New York Times best-selling picture books Somebody, illustrated by Peter Reynolds, and A Very Brave Witch, illustrated by Harry Bliss, and the novel, Shadow Baby, a Pulitzer Prize nominee and a Today Show pick. McGhee is a professor of creative writing at Metropolitan State University, and a founding member of Hamline University’s MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. She lives in Minnesota with her family.


Taeeun Yoo received the Founders Award—for the most promising new talent of the year—from the Society of Illustrators for her debut picture book The Little Red Fish, for which Publishers Weekly in a starred review raved, “exhilarating visual images . . . shutting the book feels like awakening from a dream.” She also illustrated stunning new covers for Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time quintet. Born and raised in Korea, Yoo came to New York City to study illustration at The School of Visual Arts where she earned her MFA. She lives in New York City.

Alison McGhee
Taeeun Yoo

Taeeun Yoo

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Only a Witch Can Fly
Alison McGhee; Illustrated by Taeeun Yoo
Award

American Library Association Notable Children's Books, Amazon.com Top 10 Editor’s Picks: Teens, Bank Street Best Children's Book of the Year, Books for the Teen Age, New York Public Library, Booklist Editors' Choice, Horn Book Magazine Fanfare List, Kirkus Reviews Editor's Choice, School Library Journal Best Books of the Year, Texas TAYSHAS High School Reading List

Hardcover

Hardcover
Feiwel & Friends
August 2009
Hardcover
ISBN: 9780312375034
ISBN10: 0312375034
Picture Book
9 x 10 inches, 32 pages, Full-color illustrations
Age Range: 4 to 8
Grade Range: p to 3
$16.99
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