The Witch's Face: A Mexican Tale

by Eric A. Kimmel, Fabricio Vanden Broeck (Illustrator)

Don Aurelio falls in love with a witch who has a beautiful face but fails to heed her special instructions.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1993

About the author

Eric A. Kimmel is an American author of more than 150 children's books. His works include Caldecott Honor Book Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins (illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman), Sydney Taylor Book Award winners The Chanukkah Guest and Gershon's Monster, and Simon and the Bear: A Hanukkah Tale.
Kimmel was born in Brooklyn, New York and earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Lafayette College in 1967, a master's degree from New York University, and a PhD in Education from the University of Illinois in 1973. He taught at Indiana University at South Bend, and at Portland State University, where he is Professor Emeritus of Education.
Kimmel lives with his wife, Doris, in Portland, Oregon.

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 4 out of 5]

En route to Mexico City, Don Aurelio Martinez seeks shelter at the house of three witches in this picture-book retelling of a folktale from Central Mexico. The three women - one elderly, one middle-aged, one young and beautiful - feed Don Aurelia, and he finds himself sleeping through the night and next day. Warned by the youngest witch, Emilia, that he is in danger, he fails to escape that night, and finds himself imprisoned in a cage. It is then that Emilia, with whom he has fallen in love, takes a more active role in helping him to escape, telling him to burn the three witches' faces, which they remove at night before going out flying, and to fly away himself on magical wings of straw. She also asks him to burn her own witch face, and to make her a new one, before summoning her to him. He does the latter, but fails to do the former, and trouble ensues. Introducing Emilia, who now has a misshapen, leather-like face to his family, Don Aurelio finds it difficult to accept his love with her new, less beautiful appearance. When his father questions him about his engagement, he becomes discouraged, and taking Emilia's original witch face from its hiding place, he places it on her while she is sleeping. Confronted with this betrayal, Emilia leaves him, vowing to become a witch after all, and Don Aurelio, crippled from a fall, mourns her loss for the rest of his life...

According to the brief author's note at the beginning of The Witch's Face: A Mexican Tale, the story here is partially taken from the oral tradition of the Mazahua Indian people of Central Mexico, and from a Spanish-language adaptation of it, La Esposa Bruja. A version can be found in Lilian Scheffler's Cuentos y leyendas de México : tradición oral de grupos indígenas y mestizos , although Eric A. Kimmel's presentation seems to be the first time it has appeared in English. I'm so glad that he has retold it, as the story is both fascinating and haunting, and I only wish that more of the witch folklore from this region - apparently there is a wealth of tales - was translated. I appreciated the unhappy ending here, as it ran counter to my expectations, but also felt very natural in the story. It is clear that Don Aurelia does feel something sincere for Emilia, as witnessed by his lifelong grief at her loss, but it is also clear that he lacks the strength to look past appearances, and the faithfulness necessary to keep his word to her. The accompanying artwork from Mexican illustrator Fabricio Vanden Broeck is dark-toned and very expressive, quite well-suited to the nature of the tale. All in all, this was a wonderfully engaging picture-book folktale, one I would recommend to readers who enjoy stories about witches, or who are interested in the traditional lore of Mexico.

[Amanda Munn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plot Summary: Don Aurelio Martinez, a young man, decides to stay at a house on his way to Mexico City only to find that its inhabitants are three witches who plan to kill him, but after befriending the youngest witch, Emilia, Don Aurelio learns how to escape and what he must do to break the spell cast on Emilia.

Critical Analysis: This story is beautifully adapted by Eric A. Kimmel, and the illustrations by Fabricio Vanden Broeck reflect the emotion throughout the story quite well. When Don Aurelio first comes up to the witch’s house, the scenery around him reflects that of a peaceful evening. The illustrations quickly become darker as Don Aurelio’s fate takes a detrimental turn. The last images become even darker as Emilia flees Don Aurelio when she learns he has not followed her orders to completely break the spell. The last page of the story contains an eerie illustration of the leather mask made by Don Aurelio as the author ends the story with a Mexican proverb.

[Cierra Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is about a witch and her "prince" saving her but he comes into some trouble when he removes her beautiful mask and has to replace it with one that he's made that isn't as pretty. It goes into the topics of what love should be about, how physical features impact others, and is a romance gone bad. I really love that this is a Mexican tale and encompasses a culture that I haven't read about before. The illustrations are funny and detailed. I really think kids will love hearing about a story tale that is very different and doesn't necessarily have a happy ending.

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Illustrations are so dark, it's hard to make out what's happening.