YMMV / Four Kids, Three Cats, Two Cows, One Witch (Maybe)

• Alternate Character Interpretation:
  • Beverly starts getting nicer to Gerard halfway through the book. Is it just her being a Defrosting Ice Queen? Or did she have a Heel Realization?
  • Kevin's story being a metaphor for his parents' divorce. Is it possible he at first started resenting his father for leaving but has come to appreciate what he must have been going through or what may have compelled him to leave? The story paints the merman who leaves his family as a Henpecked Husband who's not appreciated until he's gone - suggesting that Kevin may wonder if he himself is responsible for driving his father away.
• Funny Moments:
  • Beverly and Elizabeth's annoyance at the Values Dissonance in Gerard's story (where the heroine is raised so she can be married off).
  "Was this boy only eleven? Where did he get these ideas?"
  • When the storm hits, Dymphna goes outside and starts calling "Dymphna!" loudly. Before she realises that's what the cow is called, Beverly wonders why Dymphna is calling for herself.
  Beverly: Doesn't it get confusing (on naming the cow after herself).
  Dymphna: No. I call her 'Dymphna', she doesn't call me anything.
  • While Beverly and Elizabeth are eating ice cream, Elizabeth starts licking the bowl. Beverly takes a moment to look outraged...before joining in. She then wonders about the scientific explanation for why this tastes better than off the spoon.
  • Gerard remarks that he was quite fond of the smell of cat pee, being reminded of "flowering current".
  • Beverly's thoughts of trying to use running water to soothe Elizabeth's ankle.
  "It wasn't so much the foot that was the problem, but what they were going to do with the rest of Elizabeth while her foot was in the sink."
• Heartwarming Moments:
  • Beverly's developing protective instinct for Gerard is very sweet. She notably tells Elizabeth off for bullying him, and acts as a mentor figure to him.
  • The Pet the Dog moment between Beverly and Kevin, where they both bond over knowing about birds. It's the start of Beverly softening towards everyone.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: Beverly pointedly ends her story with Fairy Tale Motifs by having the princess choose not to get married, leaving it on a Maybe Ever After situation. She'd probably approve of Frozen, Tangled and Enchanted.
• Jerkass Woobie: Beverly is bossy, stuck-up and slightly rude. But she has a difficult relationship with her parents - who are going through a rough patch - and her older brothers are away at college and don't have much time for her.
• Unintentionally Unsympathetic: Kevin many times. He calls Beverly out for looking down on his for being a culchie - yet he displays plenty of prejudices towards city people too. While it's implied Beverly lets go of her prejudices, Kevin doesn't seem to if a segment where he tries to stop Gerard asking Dympha personal questions is any indicator. While it's implied some of this stems from angst that his father moved away to the city, the narrative never calls him out for his prejudices.
• The Woobie:
  • Gerard is the Butt-Monkey of the group and is bullied by everyone. Notably Elizabeth - who is a Nice Girl to everyone else - treats him horribly. He's separated from his beloved cat halfway through, and seems to provoke a Big Brother Instinct in Beverly of all people.
  • Dymphna too considering she's been shunned by the town and has to live in isolation on the island. She seems terrified at the idea of being talked about amongst the townspeople.