Little Witch Hazel: A Year in the Forest

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A pleasant walk through the four seasons, this book is four vignettes of stories of Little Witch Hazel and her life in the forest. Of course, I suppose one could argue that the figure of the witch initially does come from the Wise Woman herbalist/healer archetype, so perhaps Hazel is a witch after all. I sought this one out (and had it recommended to me) largely on the strength of my interest in witchy picture-books, but having now read it, I think Hazel is less of a witch, in the traditional sense, and more of an elf or woodland sprite. Little Witch Hazel is who I want to be when I grow up, a stout chubby lady with hairy legs and a big pointy red hat living in a cozy little house in the forest helping her fellow creatures. An earthy and beautiful collection of four stories that celebrate the seasons, nature, and life, from award-winning author-illustrator Phoebe Wahl.

I am obsessed with this picture book and the adorable chubby main character who is now my life inspiration.

In "The Haunted Stump", the witch and her friends try to figure out the mystery of a strange howl that's permeating their usually placid forest. She grew up unschooled in Washington State, and credits her free spirited childhood in the Northwest for much of her inspiration and work ethic.

Instead, the coloured-pencil textures evoke the spirit of some early picture books by author-illustrators such as Wanda Gág. The stories are simple in the very best way possible - they tell enough story to let your imagination fill in more details, but are still complete. The reader follows Hazel through each season and is able to see her home, the forest, and all of her neighbors in different settings. I had never heard of her before having this one recommended to me, so I am glad to have that oversight corrected, as her story was engaging and her artwork simply charming. In Spring: The Orphaned Egg, Hazel cares for an abandoned egg, raising Otis the owl when he hatches.

The heart of this story is a simplistic, community-oriented life, filled with little adages for everyday life and living.