This book was disturbing from start to finish. Jessica is neglected by her single mom and her two best friends have recently ditched her for others. She starts identifying with Ann from a book about the Salem Witch Trials that she is reading: 12 years old and tormented by demons sent by witches. "Ann had been pitied and honored and feared by everyone." Jessica loses the book, thinks her cat is a demon sent by a witch and starts lying, destroying property and is contemplating murder, all things she believes her evil cat is telling her to do. Then she finds the book and finishes reading it. An older Ann confesses "The demons who had tormented her in her unhappy childhood, she said, had not been sent by the people who had been accused and executed." This should be Jessica's lightbulb moment, but she still wants to get rid of Worm - "he's a demon" and Mrs. Fortune hands her an exorcism ceremony. "We all invite our own devils, and we must exorcise our own." So, she tries to exorcise Worm and somehow it backfires and she exorcises herself. Nope.

It was short but not bad.
I had different expectations going into this book. It's a middle grade, so not a lot happened.
I did not hate this book, but I felt it was lacking. I found little depth to the characters beyond stereotypical reactions.
I gave it three stars because I actually finished it. For being short, it took time to get to where it was better. If it was a bit longer, I may have riven up on it.

Wow, NOT what I was expecting! Sooo creepy and DARK. I expected a light read about friends and witches... turns out it was more about child abuse (well, neglect), extreme loneliness, cat torture, and a 12 year old girl with psychopathic tendencies. It took me 'til almost the end to adjust my expectations, but I suppose it was a nice little atmospheric horror story. I was intrigued by the '70s vibe...

This is the second of her books that I have read and I am not thinking that I will be reading any more. She is a bit too dark for me and takes leaps that I find hard to adjust to.

I did love one quote from this book: "So I will tell you this. Belief in mysteries - all manner of mysteries - is the only lasting luxury in life."

good...kinda creepy...i like books on witches...

I really enjoyed this! It has a surprising amount of depth compared to many children's books that I've read as an adult, though I think the nuance (is it magic or psychology!?) would have been lost on me if I'd read it as a child. Young anti-heroes are so rare, but I think that this one is done quite well. Sometimes I pitied Jessica, sometimes I was absolutely frustrated with her, but isn't that exactly how anti-heroes are supposed to make us feel? XD The micro-writing really blew me away a few times, and the macro-writing is ultimately well-paced with a short slow dip around the middle. Overall, a solid read!

I read this several times when I was in upper elementary and middle school. Which is odd because it always scared the bejaysus out of me!! The illustrations had a lot to do with that, I realise now, but I still would have rated it a solid five stars in those days. Reading it 40+ years later, it's like a completely different book, and I don't like it nearly as much (which leads me to shelve it among the disappointments).

From my perspective today, I see more of the troubled-child story. It's a lot less woo-woo and a lot more manipulative, angry adolescent who thinks she can lie her way out of any situation, and when that doesn't work, she plays amnestic. She's mad because her school friends "dumped" her--without asking herself why they did that. She's mad because her divorced mother has a new boyfriend, and doesn't include her in their activities--which is hardly surprising. She's mad at Worm for needing her help, though no one asked her to take on a days-old kitten. No wonder the cat doesn't like Jessica, she does nothing but yell at it, try to hit it, or grab it. No cat would take kindly to that; I'm surprised Worm didn't claw chunks out of her! She's just always angry, and it's always someone else's fault. At this reading I had no sympathy with Jessica! But then if I knew the me I was then, today, I probably wouldn't like her either--shoot, I didn't like the me I was then in those days!!

I don't know if this book has been banned anywhere, but I'd certainly be careful about handing it to impressionable adolescent girls who might decide to imitate the main character by reading up on witchcraft or simply taking their anger out on everyone around them.

I am in constant search mode for good spooky books for fourth graders. This book could be recommended to certain students with their parent approval. The book talks about, The Salem Witch Trials, there is witchcraft in the book and a small amount of animal cruelty. Not a book I'd personally recommend to children.

This young adult novel by the author of "The Egypt Game" has some of the same themes--hyper-imaginative, neglected daughter of a single mom, occult content, complicated friendships. Twelve-year-old Jessica rescues a newborn kitten unlike any other. Jessica dislikes cats, and especially this one, who seems to read not only her mind, but her soul. I loved this book and what it had to say about anger, relationships, and (yes) witchcraft. I read it right after reading the New Yorker article about Salem witchcraft by Stacey Schiff--and author Snyder gets it.

I first read this book in elementary school. All these years later I asked for it for Christmas. I’d been snooping around looking for titles of books I’d read back then. Some I vaguely remembered others nothing more than the sense that I liked it. I think if you were to cross reference the Accelerated Reader list with Newbery lists you would find a disturbing amount of my books. This book is not exactly my current reading level but the story is gold. I think it teaches a lesson while roping you in with a bit of mystery. I think Jessica is about how most middle school girls see themselves, but I think anyone can see themselves in her. I also think we all have a little Worm in need of exorcism of whatever kind. (And yes I enjoy being vague.)

Newbery Honor 1973

I think we can all agree that although Joy was trying, she played a big role, solely and mainly I will say, to Jessica’s insanity because instead of spending time with her daughter, she chose what little time she left outside work to date some uncredited character who didn’t want to spend time with her daughter.

Why do YA books have such abhorrent protagonists? At least the majority of them do. I suppose it's to relate to every other pre-teen/teenager who feels that the world is against him/her. I know I was like that, but man, was I such a little brat then.

Anyway, this book was incredibly disapointing as was the other one I read a few days ago. Boo. How they won the Newbery Award, I do not understand.