Miss Hickory
by Carolyn Sherwin Bailey
illustrated by Ruth Gannett
Age: 8+
Interests: toys, dolls, nature, animals, birds, seasons, Christmas, religion
Viking Press: 1946
128 pages
Also by this author: A Christmas Party, The Little Rabbit Who Wanted Red Wings, Stories for Every Holiday, Finnegan II: His Nine Lives
Other books on the ‘sentient toy’ theme: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, Hitty: Her First Hundred Years, Adventures of the Little Wooden Horse, The Mouse and his Child
A hard-headed doll lives on her own in a little house in the woods near a human home, the one she originally came from. When she learns that the family is moving away for the winter, and a chipmunk takes over her home, she must fend for herself and find a new home. With some aid and advice from a Crow and a cat named Mr. T. Willard-Brown, Miss Hickory does quite well, though her suspicious, unfriendly nature proves slow to thaw. After a magical Christmas event, however, she begins to rue her obstinate ways. Finally in the end a hungry squirrel eats her hickory nut head but Miss Hickory carries on to a surprising new life.
This book is pretty amazingly weird, I’ve got to say that. First of all our protagonist, while a doll (applewood body and hickory nut head), is an older, cranky, stubborn lady, not a child at all. She’s generally unpleasant to everyone, though her suspicions are often founded, since this is a realistically dog-eat-dog version of nature. She goes through an interesting softening of her character, as she finds herself helping other creatures and actually enjoying herself. She starts to appreciate the finer points of the beauty of the seasons, and even begins to have a little fun… when she suffers an unusual fate.
One of my biggest pet peeves would be adults who review children’s books, particularly very old children’s books, only for the joy of being really snarky about them. You’ve got to cut the authors some slack and take into consideration the time at which the books were written. It’s interesting to me that both this book and the Newbery winner from the year previous (Strawberry Girl) have a surprisingly harsh, violent edge to them. This just makes me ponder the realities of the late 1940s, just after the end of WWII and with the privation of the 1930s still in recent memory.
Even the most bizarre and potentially inappropriate of old books can hold interest for some. This book for example, has moments of real poetry, as well as pretty bizarre moments (ie. the ending). The scene in which all the farm animals mysteriously file into the barn on Christmas Eve to witness something miraculous feels strange and a little out of place – similar to “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn” in The Wind in the Willows, though not quite as masterfully written – and readers could find it either transcendent or just plain goofy. The moments when Miss Hickory lets loose and tries new things, like ice-skating or going for a ride on Crow’s back, are really lovely and evocative. And the details of her life, especially the clothing she fashions from leaves and moss, are charming.
Then there’s the ending… When the lazy, thoughtless Squirrel finally gives in to his baser instincts and pulls her head off to eat it, Miss Hickory goes on living without it. She is actually described as “headless, heedless, happy”, and realizes that her head was only holding her back. In a final moment I certainly didn’t see coming, she hauls her headless body up an apple tree and actually grafts herself on – remember, her body was made of applewood – growing into a new branch with a new life, etc. Phew. It’s possible though, that children will accept the whole thing without qualms. The New York Times claimed it “adds a final touch of poetry to an unusual fantasy.” I myself did not read this when I was young, so I looked through a few reviews and found both adults who adored the book as a child and others who were horrified and traumatized by the ending. The best advice I can give would be to consider your own young reader and how they will react. (For the more sensitive souls you might do better to read Rabbit Hill, a wonderful book about wild animals also written in the 1940s, but which has aged better and ends in a more traditionally happy way.)
A summing up… don’t be lulled into thinking this is a book without bite, simply because it’s about a doll. There’s some harsh reality at work here, and disturbing moments, hence the 8 and up age recommendation. The descriptions of nature and the changing seasons however, are not without charm. For those who want to push the children’s literature envelope!
(this title available at amazon.com)
Rarest Kind of Best 
Jul 13, 2015 @ 10:04:48
One of my favorite books as a child! Thanks for your review,
Susan
Feb 20, 2017 @ 13:09:32
I was a reluctant reader, but this book helped me enjoy reading.
Aug 08, 2019 @ 16:25:31
I wanted to read Miss Hickory back in the sixth grade but put it off until I turned 62. Reluctantly it is something I wished I had read aloud to my two daughters when they were still daddy’s girls. What happens to Miss Hickory shocked me, then filled me with warmth. Almost made me cry. For better or worse, I grew up knowing women like Miss Hickory. But I shudder to think what reading that tale at the age of twelve would have done to me and my very impressionable nature.
Aug 12, 2019 @ 11:42:25
Yes, it’s always interesting to me to read children’s books from bygone eras that are surprisingly harsh or dark. I’m not sure I would have liked this one much when I was young either! Thanks for commenting!
Dec 04, 2019 @ 13:28:38
As one who grew up (and still continue peeling the delicious layers of literary genius of CSB’s Miss Hickory) on this ‘tale’, I’d like to weigh in on some of the commentary I’ve enjoyed reading:
First and foremost, reviewers describing Miss Hickory as a doll have done readers a disservice; nowhere in the book, it’s jacket or introduction is she referred to as anything but a country woman. The makeup of her body can be deceiving, I’ll admit. Her size would suggest that too, but pixies and the like who inhabit much ‘forest lore’ over the centuries, are not dolls, either.
As children, we were further drawn into the adventure by Bailey’s treatment of Christianity on another plane- the world non-human. Reference to humans as “two leggers” demonstrates a healthy pride and contempt by friends of the forest. We thought it was cool that a Jack in the Pulpit was just that; that the Christmas miracle celebrated in the animal kingdom was complete in its creativity by merely describing a star filled night with a full moon- the two conditions never exist simultaneously. Miss Hickory’s role as a Doubting Thomas is still a lesson for us all. Finally, Bailey’s account of the death and resurrection of Miss Hickory was ( with proper knowledge of plant life ) quite the stroke as the decapitated (humorously as it can be presented) and humbled character embraces a cross of her own, scrambling up a tree and experiences rebirth as a scion, eventually discovered by young Timothy.
Much of the book’s most ardent theme can be lost If readers are not focused on a single point that Miss Hickory was one of, if not the first feminist characters in children’s book history. She was not a doll and did not seek male companionship as her saving grace. She accepted help from male creatures, but was bound and determined to survive that winter without “Mr. Hickory”. A real life drama arose in the early 40’s, once the book had gained its Newberry chops. Bailey was contacted by a young Walt Disney who wanted to make the story a full length feature to compliment his other triumphs from Snow White to Alice in Wonderland. Knowing the heroines of his formula films were all destined for the ‘first kiss’ plot line, she feared once the rights were turned over, so would the make up of her fiercely independent character. She turned him down. Fortunately, the world is left with Miss Hickory’s image as intended. One can only imagine the dolls, toys and products that might have followed, had her creator not been her best advocate.
My grandparents owned the farm adjacent to “The Old Place” both real working farms at one time. My grandfather was a caretaker for Dr. Hill and Carolyn. My mother, Mary Jane, and my Uncle Jack, were in fact Ann and Timothy. They have now passed, but they will always be with us as they reside forever on page 121.
I do hope some of what I have included in this post will encourage readers both old, new and renewed. It’s a children’s book for sure, but so much more than meets the eye, if you understand that “anything can happen”. Good reading!
Dec 11, 2019 @ 10:30:52
Thank you, George, for your thoughts and insight! I admit I did not read this as a child, and it’s such an unusual book it left me scratching my head a bit. Which is good! Too much children’s literature is numbingly simplistic. It’s always nice to encounter a book that is so lovingly remembered by readers such as yourself! I did not know about Disney pursuing the story, I agree that the results would have been terrible had Bailey agreed. So glad she didn’t! Thanks again for your thoughtful remarks, I enjoyed reading them.
Dec 12, 2019 @ 11:30:00
Kim,
Thanks for your response to my comment. As children, this was the time of year that during a bedtime hour, Mother (Ann) would read chapter 9 to us, as an addition to the trove of Christmas books we enjoyed. Everything Ruth Gannett encompassed with the center fold illustration in ‘Now Christmas Comes’ – the Peaceable Kingdom setting, the white crow leading the procession, the combined starry sky and full moonlit night- all served an indelible role in bringing the miracle of the season to us. I do hope you will devour Miss Hickory again both as an adult an passionate ambassador of children’s literature.
… and if the spirit moves you, I released a song I wrote for my family in 2010, the inspiration of which Miss Hickory very much factored into.
‘Temple Mountain Rag’ can be found by visiting : http://www.CDBaby.com and searching George Wolbers/ Hooleymanger. All the best, George.