Memory Lane

I have great memories reading as a child, as I mentioned during our "favorite book" class discussion. And "Heckedy Peg" is definitely first and foremost in my memory. The story itself is extremely morbid and scary, so I do seriously wonder why this is considered a children's book but...the illustrations were FANTASTIC. And, considering how much I love horror movies now, it is easy to understand why I liked this book so much as a child. The story focuses on seven children (each named after a different day of the week), their mother, and a witch named Heckedy Peg. One day when the mother is gone, Heckedy Peg tricks the children into letting her in the house despite being told beforehand by their mom to not let any strangers in. Soon thereafter, the witch changes each child into food. Long story short, in order to get the children back, Heckedy Peg strikes a deal with their mother: she may have the children back if she is able to correctly guess which food is what child. I loved the excitement the story evoked -- but it really boiled down to the artwork. The imagery was so vivid and real and unlike anything I had ever seen before.