The witch with the long, sharp nose

by Nancy Faulkner

Against the witch's orders, a little girl looks into the chimney to see what is hidden there.

Genres: Picture Books

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

A native of Lynchburg, Virginia, Ms. Faulkner developed her love of history growing up and taught school in Virginia before moving to New York City where she wrote many books for children.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

The eponymous witch with the long, sharply-pointed nose lived in a small cottage with a tall chimney, on the edge of a vast forest. With her lived three black kittens, and a young girl named Jennie Maria. Setting off to town one day, to do the shopping, the witch warned Jennie Maria not to look in the chimney while she was gone. Naturally, having exhausted all of her other activities, and becoming bored, the girl did just that, and found a feather bag full of money. Terrified, when she couldn't get the bag back into the chimney, Jennie Maria panicked, taking off into the forest. Passing two houses, where she found no refuge, the exhausted girl eventually came to rest in the home of a young boy. But the witch, returned home from her shopping, was on her trail...

Originally published in 1972, The Witch with the Long, Sharp Nose was apparently a story handed down in author Nancy Faulkner's family for many generations. Faulkner is better known for her works of historical fiction for young readers - The Traitor Queen , The Sacred Jewel , etc. - and this is one of only a few picture-books she penned. The story is interesting, with a certain amount of whimsy - I loved the witch's long nose, which gets so tired at one point that it drags upon the ground - and it sets up an engaging premise, with Jennie Maria becoming frightened and running off. That said, a number of things didn't quite make sense to me - why, for instance, did Jennie Maria take the bag with her, when she fled? - and I was left wondering what happened in the end. The story cuts off as the witch drives Jennie Maria home, poking the girl with her nose, but there is no indication what will happen next - will Jennie Maria be punished? will the two settle back into their lives? It's impossible to say. Although the open-ended conclusion left me wanting more, I did enjoy this fairy-tale-style story, and I appreciated the accompanying artwork from Ronald M. LeHew, done in a cute, colorful style that reminded me just a bit of Mary Engelbreit. This is a fairly obscure book - I had to request it through inter-library loan - but if one can obtain a copy, I recommended it to picture-book readers who enjoy fairy-tales, witchy fare, and vintage illustrative styles.

[Lindsay · Rating 1 out of 5]

The illustrations are colorful. That's about as positive as I can be.

Curiosity killed the cat, or in this case, got the girl beat. Similar to Goldilocks, the girl gets into the witch's belongings and then tries to hide because she doesn't want to get into trouble. Unlike Goldilocks, the girl lives with the witch and even has her own special chair. The girl is beaten all the way home with the witch's nose. That's it. No lesson other than if you don't obey and are afraid to say sorry, you will be beaten by your own caretaker. (I'm assuming the girl is being raised by the witch because when left alone, she comes up with her own things to do.)

[Cheryl · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars -- I didn't get it. This story made no sense. I can only think that this was published because Nancy Faulkner was already the author of several published works including an Edgar Award honor book in 1966 titled The Secret of the Simple Code. This one, published in 1972, is folklore that was passed down through the author's family. But I still didn't get it. Maybe it was just me. I did enjoy the illustrations, though.

[Alice Greene · Rating 1 out of 5]

Alice: 1 star.
Jenny: 1 star. Terrible. There is no ending to the story...no resolution of what happens when the girl looks in the chimney, finds the money and leaves. The witch simply finds her and takes her home. Really wish I did not spend time on this one.