The Widow's Broom

Brilliant picture-book practitioner Chris Van Allsburg - two-time winner of the Caldecott Medal, for Jumanji and The Polar Express, as well as a Caldecott Honor, for The Garden of Abdul Gasazi - delivers a deliciously spooky reading experience with The Widow's Broom, a book which boasts both an engrossing story, and gorgeous illustrations. "Witches' brooms don't last forever," it begins, proceeding to unfold the story of widow Nina Shaw, who aids the injured witch who crash-lands in her field, and is rewarded with the mostly magic-less broom that she leaves behind. Mostly magic-less, but still enchanted, the broom becomes a helper and companion for the lonely widow, assisting her with the chores, and playing the piano for her. Until, show more that is, the widow's frightened and superstitious neighbors, led by the vindictive and nosy Mr. Spivey, decide that the broom must be the work of the devil...

As with all good stories, The Widow's Broom can be read and understood on a variety of levels, whether it be as a spooky tale of magic, suitable for the Halloween season, or as a meditation on the dangers and futility of superstition, and (implied) religious intolerance. The idea that we often create a world in which our fears are brought to life, through a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy - Mr. Spivey believes that the broom is evil and dangerous, and his sons, having doubtlessly picked up on this idea, persecute the broom, which retaliates in kind, proving that it can be very dangerous indeed - is subtly conveyed in the story, as is the notion that things are rarely as they seem (love that surprise ending!). The illustrations are simply breathtaking: done all in black and white, they have a kind of sepia tone to them, and ably capture the depths of shadow and presence of light, in each scene being depicted. There is a sense of mystery and magic here, that is perfectly suited to the tale at hand. I think my favorite image was of the witch, grasping her billowing cloak, her face turned to the side: so powerful, so frightening and beautiful, all at once!

With a strong story, complete with surprise ending, and beautifully rich artwork, The Widow's Broom is a book I highly recommend: to anyone who is looking for engagingly witchy tales (at Halloween, or any other time of the year), or who is an admirer of Van Allaburg's artwork! show less

The brooms of witches don't last forever. Published in 1992 and created by Chris Van Allsburg, the author-illustrator who brought us the delightful Polar Express, this book called The Widow's Broom shares the story of a broom that lost its zoom. This story is lots of fun for Halloween.

All witch brooms eventually wear out. It's just a fact of witchy life. One day while the widow Minna Shaw is out in her garden just such a witch's broom runs out of flying power at a most inopportune time, while its passenger is aloft! The witch plummets to the ground and lies injured in Minna's garden. Without a second thought the kindly Minna brings the witch inside and after tucking her into a quiet place allows her to rest comfortably while the witch show more heals herself. After the witch has recovered and magically summoned a ride home, Minna discovers that she has left the old broom behind. It may not have much in the way of flying power any more but it turns out to have quite a bit of spunk left in it!

The broom sweeps and cleans incessantly until Minna succeeds in training it to do other useful things like chop wood, fetch water and feed the chickens. It even learns to play the piano.

Nosy neighbors automatically assume that because the broom is magical it must be the work of the devil and they set out to destroy it in a typical witch-huntish sort of way. Minna and the broom give them their just desserts and we are treated to a clever, humorous resolution.

Chris Van Allsburg is in peak form in this wonderful book. His writing is so mysterious and evocative yet filled with his characteristic wry humor. The story is sweetly spooky with just the right hint of shadow and a generous sprinkling of mischief.

"Minna Shaw was asleep in a chair by the fireplace, where embers of a dying fire glowed on the hearth. The witch knelt and took one of the red hot coals in her hand. Outside she made a fire of leaves and twigs, then dropped a strand of her hair into the flame. The fire hissed and crackled, burning with a brilliant blue light. Before long the witch could see a dark form flying overhead. It was another witch, who circled slowly and landed beside the fire."

The text appears on the pages facing the illustrations and is set in medium size type, usually three or four short paragraphs in length. The book is an unusual size being much longer than it is wide. This adds interest to the illustrations. The large full page illustrations are absolute perfection, so engaging! Van Allsburg's familiar style of almost sepia toned illustrations rendered in pencil are filled with exquisite details and wonderful expressions and activity. The meddlesome neighbors have a Salem flavor to them while the witch, looking starkly beautiful and young rather than haggard, seems mysterious and magical. Minna is delightfully understated and open to the fortuitous changes brought on by the broom. We are treated to a fun-filled Van Allsburg plot change-up at the end.

The publishers intend this book for the 4-8 year old readership and I disagree slightly. I think four is a little too young for it because it is subtle in its humor and in the nuances of the artwork. Also there is one scene where two of the witch-hunter family's boys are taunting and abusing the broom, throwing stones, hitting it with sticks and calling it bad names. The broom retaliates with some violence which most kids will probably see as just but it does send a message that it is sometimes alright to respond violently to violence. Depending on your own parenting style you may not like that for very young children. No permanent harm is done to the boys and there is so much more to the story that you may see your way clear to overlook this part of the story. I did. I think the upper end of the readership could easily be as high as ten years old. If you can encourage your ten year old to snuggle up for a story this one will at least not condescend and they will certainly appreciate the art.

I have read this to lots of nieces and nephews over the years and all of them have enjoyed it. I heat my home with wood so I leave the wood-stove door open and the fire casts dancing shadows but you can also set candles around and make the room in which you are reading shadowy like the illustrations in the book. It is a short story so once you create some atmosphere plan on having some additional Halloween books handy because this book is certain to get kids in the mood for more spooky tales. This story is not too spooky. It is the troublesome neighbors in the book who get scared, not your little listeners. Four and five year olds might need a little help in realizing that witches are not likely to drop out of the sky because the people in the illustrations do not look far-fetched or fantastic. It is not a given that this story is make-believe, especially when you consider that we encourage children in their fantasies about Santa, Tooth Fairy and Easter Bunny. It is easy for adults to sometimes forget that small children take what we say very much to heart so don't forget to laugh and enjoy but also thoroughly point out the fantasy aspect.

I love this book and I think of the many wonderful books that have been created by the brilliant Chris Van Allsburg this is my favorite. I hope you enjoy it. show less

Really cute picture book about what happens when a witch's broom that's lost (most of) its magic is found by a widow who has not-very-tolerant neighbors. The art is fun, and the ending was perfect.

I loved this book and cannot wait to incorporate it in my classes while discussing the Salem witch trials. Just as Minna Shaw is isolated because the town fears her broom (which is different and misunderstood), there are more than enough historical examples of misunderstanding going too far. As always, Van Allsburg's illustrations are amazing and visually stimulating. Loved the twist ending!

Van Allsburg has an incredible gift of being able to take magical stories and make them seem completely possible. This is a story of a witch's old broom that begins helping an old widow and learns to play the piano. The more I read the story, the more I believe that this broom contains real life. I am completely on board with the idea that it gets offended by being locked in the closet and by boys unsweeping its hard work. By the end, I'm rooting for this broom to get the respect it deserves. If done in any other way, this book might just seem like nonsense. The relationship between the widow and broom is a beautiful one, and it is accentuated by the illustrations. In all, the story seems real, and I believe that's Van Allsburg's goal show more with all of his stories. show less

After a witch falls out of the sky one day into Widow Shaw's garden, she leaves behind her old broom. The widow discovers the broom is still full of magic, and capable of great things, but her neighbors think the broom is an evil and should be destroyed.

What is it about Van Allsburg? Where does he get these wild ideas that turn into such beautifully strange books? The illustrations are sumptuous and wonderful as always, and the story is as I said, beautifully strange, with a wonderful smile of an ending.

Widow Minna comes into possession of a witch's broom that no longer has the power to fly, but still has a lot of life left in it. Before long, the broom has learned to clean and do many other chores for the widow all on its own. Minna is very happy, but some of her neighbors are not. They think the broom is evil and are determined to destroy it.
The Widow's Broom is beautifully written with a Van Allsburgian open-ended conclusion. Readers are left to determine for themselves exactly how Minna and the broom outsmarted the neighbors, and are given just the right number of clues to do so.
Full-page illustrations heighten and support the narrative. Most illustrations are paired with a page of text, but in a few cases two illustrations that show more are snapshots from the same high-action scene alongside each other in a sort of flip-book style. These two-page spreads can be confusing because the illustrations share the same background and there is nothing separating them, so they may appear to belong to one contiguous illustration.
This book has a lot of potential for use in elementary classrooms and school libraries for teaching about prejudice, bullying, and acceptable reactions to being bullied. Because of its length and complexity, it is best suited to children in 2nd through 5th grade. It is also highly recommended for public library collections as a less well-known work by a very popular author/illustrator. show less