[In Lavender-Green Magic a] family of black children is drawn from a here-and-now situation in "Sussex," a community obviously north of Boston, into a mysterious colonial past connected with the Dimsdale estate…. Herbs account for many threads in the plot: For the children who take turns sleeping on it, an herbal pillow becomes the means of transport to early Dimsdale; they learn more of the curse put upon the Dimsdales after finding—in the center of an herb-garden maze—the house where two sisters used to mix their herbal brews. The witchlore and herbcraft, superimposed on a family situation, is skillfully worked into the plot, although there is a certain amount of light moralizing. The author succeeds particularly well in creating child personalities…. (pp. 137-38)
Virginia Haviland, in The Horn Book Magazine (copyright © 1974 by the Horn Book, Inc., Boston), October, 1974.
This is a free excerpt of 141 words. There are 145 words (approx.
1 page at 300 words per page) in the full critical essay.
Read the rest of this Criticism with our Norton, Andre 1912–: Critical Essay by Virginia Haviland Access Pass.
