Customer Reviews
A fun romp with two very naughty girls - By: Zoe Brillantes, 10 Sep 2007 
"When there is wind on the moon, you must be very careful how you behave. Because if it is an ill wind & you behave badly, it will blow straight into your heart, & then you will behave badly for a long time to come." These words uttered by Major Palfrey, Dinah & Dorinda's father, is a foretelling of a year's worth of naughtiness for the two girls. With their father gone, they do their best to make mischief as when they try to do good they end up getting scolded anyway.
First the sisters eat too many pies, steaks & bread to blow themselves up into the shape of ballloons. Then, after the village kids prick them with pins to see if they would burst, they cried themselves thin. Their real adventures begin with thoughts of revenge.
With the help of Mrs. Grimble, they bewitch themselves into kangaroos ("I have often wondered what I shalll be when I grow up, whether a teacher of dancing, or a circus rider, or a mother of ten, but never, never, never did I expect to be a kangaroo."). With kicks, leaps & bounds they terrify the village people. But their rampage is short-lived. Lassoed by the zoo's owner & caretaker, they are caged & tended as other zoo animals. Here, they solve the mystery of lost Ostrich eggs & free two beasts who become their loyal friends.
Their appetite for naughtiness & cleverness whetted, they turn their attention to freeing their beloved dancing teacher from the county jail. All this is just preparation for the greatest escape adventure of alll, rescuing their father from the castle dungeons of a far country.
Eric Linklater's humor shines & the plot zigs & zags unexpectedly. Dorinda & Dinah will be the envy of any child who yearns to take their naughtiness to a higher level.
Caution: Some sentiments in the book may be offensive to some: that fat people are ugly or a person whose face is blackened by dirt looks like a 'negro'.
Overalll it is a fun romp with two very naughty girls. Just one thing boggles this reader's mind: Why doesn't their mother ever notice them missing for days or weeks at a time?
Favourite children's book - By: T. W. Jones, 01 Jun 2006 I am delighted to see that this book is currently in print. Like another of the reviewers, I have read & re-read it constantly for many years & am still enchanted by its strange combination of fantasy & satire.
Good memories from my childhood - By: Ms. Caitlin B. Blanchard, 02 Mar 2006 
an imaginative, & in places dark, story ideal for children, with more imagination than most available childrens books, & better written too.
Treasured childhood book - By: , 19 Mar 2004 I read this book whilst at primary school, & tracked it down through booksleuth - A book you will find hard to put down, not only suitable for the younger members of the family, but those young at heart searching for a magic, mystical getaway!
Fantastic - By: , 01 Jun 2001 I also had this book read to me at school when I was 8. It had the whole class totallly enthrallled. It is particularly good for reading aloud as it has a strong & fast paced story with lots of dialogue & strong characters. I read it to my children (6 & 8) last year & enjoyed it alll over again (although it now has more of a period feel to it).
