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Tom Tit Tot
In order to save her head a dull-witted girl enters into a bargain with a devilish creature
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1965
3 people are currently reading
172 people want to read
About the author
Evaline Ness
55 books19 followersEvaline Ness was an American commercial artist, illustrator, and author of children's books. As illustrator of picture books she was one of three Caldecott Medal runners-up each year 1964 to 1966 and she won the 1967 Medal for Sam, Bangs, and Moonshine, which she also wrote. She illustrated more than thirty books for young readers and wrote several of her own. She is noted for using a great variety of artistic media and methods.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
March 22, 2019
This is basically Rumplestiltskin. This is written in an older type English verse like Chaucer might use. It is told mostly in rhyme. The little man does not spin straw into gold, but he can spin 5 skeins of thread in a day. The rules are a little bit different, but it’s the same idea. The Prince, who threatens his wife daily, even over hears its name in the woods one day like the original.
The artwork feels scruffy and perfect for the story. It has a harmony to it. So, if you ever call on a little creature to spin for you to save your life, say either Tom Tit Tot or Rumplestiltskin to see if you can free yourself. I enjoyed this story.
The kids had a hard time with the language of the story. They kept asking why are they talking so weird. The nephew did enjoy this story and the little imp man with the tail. He was hoping it would get the girl. haha. He actually has a big heart, but he can have a wicked sense of humor. The niece thought this was horrible. Why was the prince allowed to kill his wife? Why did the mother marry her daughter off? She did not like that part of the story. She does not want to be forced to marry anyone. Nephew = 3 stars, niece = 1 star.
The artwork feels scruffy and perfect for the story. It has a harmony to it. So, if you ever call on a little creature to spin for you to save your life, say either Tom Tit Tot or Rumplestiltskin to see if you can free yourself. I enjoyed this story.
The kids had a hard time with the language of the story. They kept asking why are they talking so weird. The nephew did enjoy this story and the little imp man with the tail. He was hoping it would get the girl. haha. He actually has a big heart, but he can have a wicked sense of humor. The niece thought this was horrible. Why was the prince allowed to kill his wife? Why did the mother marry her daughter off? She did not like that part of the story. She does not want to be forced to marry anyone. Nephew = 3 stars, niece = 1 star.
May 16, 2023
Evaline Ness' Tom Tit Tot is simply and basically an old English version of the universally known and famous Rumpelstilzchen folktale type. And although both the presented story, the narrative, and the accompanying illustrations are expressive and do work well enough together, the combination of text and image is also in my humble opinion most definitely more than a bit potentially creepy in set-up and general expression (while I can kind of appreciate text and rendered pictures as adult, I would have likely had major issues with them as a child, but especially with the illustrations, as I strongly feel their colour schemes as well as how both the human figures and Tom Tit Tot have been aesthetically, artistically conceptualised and depicted would have given me nightmares, the fact that Evaline Ness won a Caldecott Honour designation for them very much and quite notwithstanding).
Now while I both enjoy and even applaud that Evaline Ness has chosen to not modernise the dialect (the vernacular) words of the featured text, I do think that Tom Tit Tot could have and would have much benefitted from a glossary of some type, as even I had a few instances where I did not know the dialect words, where I had to actually rely on my linguistic training to figure out meanings, and I cannot help but wonder if this would not be very much annoying and frustrating not only for children but also for parents, teachers, caregivers reading Tom Tit Tot to children (and with this salient fact in mind, I really do have to also consider whether this story, whether Tom Tit Tot would even interest children today, perhaps those who are into fairy and folktales, but even then, the sometimes hard to understand and figure out vernacular dialect words, along with the in my opinion rather strange and potentially creepy accompanying pictures and their colour schemes might be a bit off-putting to and for some if not many youngsters).
However, the issues above are not really all that much of a heavy-duty frustration for and to me, for what really does and continues to majorly grate and even anger me with regard to Tom Tit Tot is that while Evaline Ness has most likely (and actually almost certainly in my opinion) gleaned this story (and seemingly verbatim at that) from Joseph Jacobs' English Fairy Tales, this salient fact is never in any manner, in any way even acknowledged. Now I do well realise that Joseph Jacobs' copyright had by then expired, and that therefore, there was actually no legal obligation for Evaline Ness to have acknowledged his name, but I still find it rather academically dishonest and insulting for her not to have even mentioned Jacobs and the fact that she more than likely got this story from his collection (especially considering that Joseph Jacobs' compilations of English fokltales were a labour of love that took decades to amass).
Now while I both enjoy and even applaud that Evaline Ness has chosen to not modernise the dialect (the vernacular) words of the featured text, I do think that Tom Tit Tot could have and would have much benefitted from a glossary of some type, as even I had a few instances where I did not know the dialect words, where I had to actually rely on my linguistic training to figure out meanings, and I cannot help but wonder if this would not be very much annoying and frustrating not only for children but also for parents, teachers, caregivers reading Tom Tit Tot to children (and with this salient fact in mind, I really do have to also consider whether this story, whether Tom Tit Tot would even interest children today, perhaps those who are into fairy and folktales, but even then, the sometimes hard to understand and figure out vernacular dialect words, along with the in my opinion rather strange and potentially creepy accompanying pictures and their colour schemes might be a bit off-putting to and for some if not many youngsters).
However, the issues above are not really all that much of a heavy-duty frustration for and to me, for what really does and continues to majorly grate and even anger me with regard to Tom Tit Tot is that while Evaline Ness has most likely (and actually almost certainly in my opinion) gleaned this story (and seemingly verbatim at that) from Joseph Jacobs' English Fairy Tales, this salient fact is never in any manner, in any way even acknowledged. Now I do well realise that Joseph Jacobs' copyright had by then expired, and that therefore, there was actually no legal obligation for Evaline Ness to have acknowledged his name, but I still find it rather academically dishonest and insulting for her not to have even mentioned Jacobs and the fact that she more than likely got this story from his collection (especially considering that Joseph Jacobs' compilations of English fokltales were a labour of love that took decades to amass).
February 8, 2010
I appreciated this version of Rumpelstiltskin, but didn't love it. This books illustrations and language would not work well for younger readers. The illustrations are dated. They appeared to be ugly and scary at times. They are not bright and colorful, which may not appeal to younger children.
The story itself is fast paced, but I found myself getting hung up as I read. The grammar and word choice used is distracting and uncomfortable at times. Some phrases used are dated and the word ain't appears a few times.
I think it would be a useful story to introduce to students once the teacher is comfortable with the wording. You could use it to show how a story could be presented in different ways. I also think you could use this for a grammar lesson.
Summary: In this version, the girl eats too many pies and her mother tells a lie to cover this up. The king has the daughter come to marry him, but she must spin five skeins of yarn a night for a month in order to stay alive. Tom Tit Tot comes and offers to help, but she must guess his name by the end of the month otherwise she becomes his.
The story itself is fast paced, but I found myself getting hung up as I read. The grammar and word choice used is distracting and uncomfortable at times. Some phrases used are dated and the word ain't appears a few times.
I think it would be a useful story to introduce to students once the teacher is comfortable with the wording. You could use it to show how a story could be presented in different ways. I also think you could use this for a grammar lesson.
Summary: In this version, the girl eats too many pies and her mother tells a lie to cover this up. The king has the daughter come to marry him, but she must spin five skeins of yarn a night for a month in order to stay alive. Tom Tit Tot comes and offers to help, but she must guess his name by the end of the month otherwise she becomes his.
January 16, 2014
Ok, I’ll admit it. I’ve been putting off this book for awhile because of the name and the fact it was illustrated by Evaline Ness, whose illustrations I’ve gotten to unfortunately know throughout the course of the Caldecott Challenge. I know part of it is the time period she was working in, as they just liked weird color pairings in children’s books like mustard yellow and red, or avocado and black. Normally I like woodcut illustrations, but I just can’t get into her work. Then there’s the language of the book, written like the story was probably originally created in 19th century vernacular, which is not ideal for reading out-loud.
This book won a 1966 Caldecott Honor. The story is a version of the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale, and reminded me of Harve & Margot Zemach’s “Duffy and the Devil” (a Caldecott winner from 1974), which I had read previously. In this book, a young witless girl is pushed into a marriage with the king after he heard her mother say that she could spin 5 skeins of yarn a night (in reality, she was complaining about her daughter, but didn’t want the king to hear). The daughter is treated to luxury, all the meals and clothes she could want for 11 months out of the year, but has to spin her 5 skeins a night every night for a month, or the king will kill her. She doesn’t know what to do, enter a little man who promises to do the skeins for her if she will give herself to him (rather than the more common version of “give me your 1st born child”) or if she can guess his name. The month runs out and the queen is desperate to find out his name and learns it after hearing a story from the king, telling the little man and making him disappear. Recommended for ages 7+, 2 stars.
This book won a 1966 Caldecott Honor. The story is a version of the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale, and reminded me of Harve & Margot Zemach’s “Duffy and the Devil” (a Caldecott winner from 1974), which I had read previously. In this book, a young witless girl is pushed into a marriage with the king after he heard her mother say that she could spin 5 skeins of yarn a night (in reality, she was complaining about her daughter, but didn’t want the king to hear). The daughter is treated to luxury, all the meals and clothes she could want for 11 months out of the year, but has to spin her 5 skeins a night every night for a month, or the king will kill her. She doesn’t know what to do, enter a little man who promises to do the skeins for her if she will give herself to him (rather than the more common version of “give me your 1st born child”) or if she can guess his name. The month runs out and the queen is desperate to find out his name and learns it after hearing a story from the king, telling the little man and making him disappear. Recommended for ages 7+, 2 stars.
July 12, 2024
"Nimmy nimmy not, your name's Tom Tit Tot!" A wonderful English version of the "Rumpelstiltskin" story, with quaint, very old-fashioned English that makes for a fabulous story. I have a lot of fun trying to read this aloud with the appropriate accent. That the imp's pronouns are that/that's is pretty funny: "You don't know that," that said, and twirled that's tail round. The illustrations are not very colorful, having been painted in browns, blacks, and blue-green washes.
Caldecott Honor Book
Caldecott Honor Book
December 30, 2012
The woodcuts (or lino cuts) to illustrate this book are skillfully executed with a limited color palette, bringing their greatest power to facial expressions. The text for this English folk tale incorporates a great deal of dialect and idiom, locating the story in its cultural context. The story resonates with Rumpelstiltskin in various ways, but adds its own unique elements.
May 17, 2012
A folktale much like Rumplestiltskin. This countrified version makes use of dialect and is illustrated with woodcuts colored in a palette of earth tones. In this tale the daughter is promised to the king after he overhears her mother singing about how many pies her daughter ate that day. Embarrassed about what she was really singing the mother makes up a lie on the spot about howmany skeins of wool the daughter can spin. The king marries the daughter and gives her an extravagant life for 11 months and then request that she spin 5 skeins or he will kill her. A mysterious little creature helps her fulfill her task and she guesses his name to defeat him in the end.
May 14, 2017
I'm glad it's not Disneyfied. But I'm still disappointed. Even though I'm normally a fan of Ness, I can hardly make out even the characters in the illustrations, much less the details. And there's no note saying where exactly the text is from - it's fun to read aloud and it seems Ness must have adapted it, or told it from memory. And, as is often the problem in Rumplestiltskin tales, if the imp is gone, and the king is not cured of his greed, what will happen next time he wants the bride to do some special spinning?
Scholars, folk-tale completists, fans of wood-cut art... I do recommend you see if your library has this. Definitely interesting. Just not very good, imo.
Scholars, folk-tale completists, fans of wood-cut art... I do recommend you see if your library has this. Definitely interesting. Just not very good, imo.
April 15, 2015
My children and I all enjoyed this "Rumpelstilskin"-like story. My kids found his name fun to say, and were thrilled with how she ends up learning his name. The illustrations were only okay...and it is very unfortunate that no references were included to explain the origin of this story (it is nearly an exact copy from Joseph Jacob's English Fairy Tales a friend in the Goodreads Children's Book Group pointed out.).
October 5, 2017
Of the Rumpelstiltskin retellings on the list of Caldecott medalists and honorees, I think this British version is my favorite. It’s the most lively version with the most cartoonish characters, and the illustrations by Evaline Ness, with whom I have a love/hate relationship, actually suit the story quite well.
February 24, 2015
Such amazing wood block illustrations sweet in muted tones of blue and brown! A fun twin of rumplestilskin!
January 27, 2019
An English version of Rumplestiltskin .
September 17, 2018
Vertaal uit Engels deur E.P. du Plessis.
Illustrasie deur Evangeline Ness."
Illustrasie deur Evangeline Ness."
October 25, 2015
This is a variation on "Rumpelstiltskin" that replaces the miller's daughter with a girl who ate five pies and through a series of weird events winds up having to spin five skeins of flax a night for a month or risk beheading. A weird, well, thing (that book actually refers to it as "that" rather than he or she even it) rescues her, but on the condition that she either figure out his name or he takes her away. There's no child here, which I actually like better, and the king himself stumbles onto the that's name (take a wild guess what that would be). The illustrations are done in browns and black against a beige background, making them look like old woodblocks, which certainly fits, but it also is a bit hard to decipher what we're looking at in places. This is also written in dialect (I believe Cornish?), so there are some odd words and sentence constructions.
September 17, 2020
Hmm. This is a retelling of Rumpelstilskin, but it's nothing like any version I've ever read. Definitely not a Disney tale. An author's note or some historical background would have been helpful. The illustrations set the tone for the tale.
The writing style is unusual and filled with odd words, so young children are likely to lose interest. (Or break into giggles.) Here's an example:
"Now, my dear, here you'll be shut in tomorrow with some victuals and some flax, and if you haven't spun five skeins by the night, your head'll go off."
The writing style is unusual and filled with odd words, so young children are likely to lose interest. (Or break into giggles.) Here's an example:
"Now, my dear, here you'll be shut in tomorrow with some victuals and some flax, and if you haven't spun five skeins by the night, your head'll go off."
January 14, 2011
I thought this book felt familiar when I read it. I realized part way through that it was basically the same as the story "Rumplestiltzkin", except this one wasn't as good. The pictures in it are really strange and the language used I couldn't even understand at times. If you were to read one of the two, definitely read Rumplestiltzkin instead.
September 20, 2017
This Caldecott Honor book was published in the mid 1960s. It is a familiar tale (I believe it is a folktale). I remember it from my own childhood. It was very entertaining and the illustrations were very 60s.
January 29, 2018
A Caldecott Honor book from 1960s. Basically an English folktale version of Rumpelstiltskin. Not especially good art. Not an improved version of the story. Makes me wonder what future picture books are going to be like if there's been this much change in what's considered good. Just no.
February 11, 2010
A weird little Rumpelstiltskin retelling.
February 23, 2018
god book, was a gododstory evre
February 27, 2023
Sadly a lot of books I've been reading lately haven't had much of an impact on me, but I just love Evaline Ness' illustrations. She's getting to be one artist I thoughtfully enjoy and can recognize at a moment's glance. That doesn't happy much with today's picture books that all seem like they were computer made. I think that's what really brings me back to older picture books. This story is a retelling of the classic Rumpelstiltskin. I kind of enjoyed this, but I will admit it's told in a very old English sort of way and might be too hard to comprehend, especially for very young readers. Still, I always enjoy a good fairy tale picture book. Only wish it had had a darker and more clever ending. My rating - 3/5
September 24, 2018
I was not a fan of this book. It was about a king who took a wife and for 11 months she did as she pleased. However, the twelfth month she had to spin skeins. There was a little creature that showed up and spun it for her, but she had to guess his name by the end of the month. She eventually was told by someone else and the creature disappeared. This book could probably used as entertainment for younger students, but it would be hard for them to understand because of the language it uses.
April 6, 2024
Oh
My
God
Completely forgot looking here for this book but this is THE FIRST NOOK I HAVE EVER READ 🥺🥺🥺🥺
I still remember because I had to do a presentation about it in front of my class and I nailed it. I’m not sure if I was in 3rd grade maybe? 🤔
Love this story
My
God
Completely forgot looking here for this book but this is THE FIRST NOOK I HAVE EVER READ 🥺🥺🥺🥺
I still remember because I had to do a presentation about it in front of my class and I nailed it. I’m not sure if I was in 3rd grade maybe? 🤔
Love this story
February 22, 2023
Similar to Rumplestiltskin. Didn't care for the illustrations nor the conversational speech in the story.
May 2, 2023
An old English version of "Rumpelstiltskin" with woodcut illustrations by Evaline Ness. The story is pretty odd and I'm not really a fan of the illustrations, which are kind of dreary.
June 20, 2023
Caldecott Honor Book - 1966
Art medium used - woodblock, pen and ink
Art medium used - woodblock, pen and ink
March 9, 2024
Wonderful block print illustrations!!!
September 2, 2024
A version of Rumplestiltzskin I haven’t heard before.
November 29, 2025
Un divertido cuento de reyes, princesas y criaturas misteriosas.
Se ven lindas las ilustraciones.
Se ven lindas las ilustraciones.
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March 26, 2012The copy of the book i got from the library had nothing on the cover so i can't decipher much from that. The end pages are a white color bringing nothing to the story.the colors that this story consists of are black, two shades of brown, white and a light blue. When i think of these colors i get an earthly feeling like water and dirt and so forth. The background in the pictures dont consist of anything leaving the character and what its doing to be the only thing in the picture. This might be because we are suppose to pay attention to the main illustration because there is no hidden meanings anywhere. Understandin the mother in the story was hard even the daughter seemed to misinterpret what she was saying leading her to troubles. I assume the story was written in old english making it hard for me to understand. Relating it to the original tale is hard for me but i thought that somewhere in the story the women told the Tom TitTot character he could have there first born son. Im not that knowledgable in the fairytale department but i assume its pretty different.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews