The Devil's Storybook

by Natalie Babbitt

There are more ways than one to view the Devil and his works. In this collection of ten original stories, Natalie Babbitt offers us a middle-aged Old Scratch with a tender ego, proud of Hell and anxious for his reputation; a plotter at once pompous and naive who has a way of losing as often as he wins. Nothing metaphysical here--this devil, rather, has an all-too-human nature.

Some of his adventures in the World--for instance, his run-in with Walpurgis, a talking goat--are good for a laugh. Some, like the story of the clergyman who finds a demon's baby on the steps of the church, will leave readers thoughtful.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Fantasy, Childrens, Humor, Middle Grade, Comedy

101 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1974

About the author

Natalie Zane Babbitt was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. Her 1975 novel, Tuck Everlasting, was adapted into two feature films and a Broadway musical. She received the Newbery Honor and Christopher Award, and was the U.S. nominee for the biennial international Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1982.

Reviews

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a delightful collection of super short stories about the Devil and his interaction with humans (and, in one case, a goat). This isn't you arch-nemesis of God, epitome of evil, and Prince of Darkness devil. Just your neighborly, troublemaker folklore Devil. Sometimes he heads up to earth cause a little trouble, sometimes he has to deal with complaining denizens of hell, sometimes he is just lazy and wants to trick people into doing work for him. In some stories he comes out on top in others humans get the better of him, but in all the stories there is some little grain of morality the reader can learn from. Super quick and light read, great as a palate cleanser or if you just want to unwind.

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've loved this my whole life. I still like creative fables, and 'flash fiction.' And of course Babbitt is the best... these *could* be told as anecdotes, even more concisely, but then we wouldn't get the sly humor, the interesting metaphors, the hints at larger philosophies....

I dropped this on the kitchen table and, sure enough, my 20 yo son picked it up and started giggling right away, and is going to read the whole thing.

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I spent two weeks reading all of Natalie Babbit's books. I am better for it, and this was a stand out even among such exceptional works. To quote Jean Stafford's review: "The Devil is not dire; he is a scheming practical joker and comes to earth often when he is restless, to play tricks on clergymen, goodwives, poets, and pretty girls." A books for bright children (why not?) and their parents to share. I would say this book is like I.B. Singer for young readers, but he wrote wonderful books for children and they aren't quite like this. Reminds me of stories told by my grandmother who was born in Turkey in 1900. Macabre, moral and fascinating.

[Sylvester (Taking a break in 2023) · Rating 4 out of 5]

"From his brimstone bed at break of day,   
A walking the Devil is gone,
To look at his snug little farm of the earth,   
And see how his stock went on."

Robert Southey

A very enjoyable collection of stories, all in some way dealing with the devil. I liked it so much I thought "There should really be more of these fables." and what do I find but Ms. Babbitt has written a second one. Now I just have to dig it up from oblivion. But really, these were more than just amusing, they were interesting. The one about the goat driving everyone in hell nuts -! Or just the whole scenario of the dark one roaming about, looking for ways to mess with people. Funny but useful. There should be a genre of these. C.S. Lewis wrote something like it - well, a book from the devil's point of view - there must be more out there as well.

[Katy · Rating 5 out of 5]

NPR did a recent feature on children’s literature which piqued my interest because I wasn’t aware children read anymore. I listened as a children’s book author reviewed her favorite books from childhood and reveled in her choices, which included The Boxcar Children series (which I read over a summer in grade school; probably between 2nd and 3rd grade) and Roald Dahl’s entire catalog of work. I realized that what this children’s author and I had in common was that as kids we clearly both valued being spoken to like we were like minded people. I know I always loved books that spoke to me like I was in on it, and not like it needed to be dumbed down for my tiny kid brain.

One of the book’s on the woman’s list was this one, which I had never heard of. She read a passage and I knew I had to read it. It is a collection of short folk tale-like stories about the Man Himself (the bad one). What I like about this book is that sometimes the Devil prevails! None of the stories are sugarcoated so the good always wins over evil, but the common thread is that the person who acted with the least amount of common sense during the course of the story was punished.

If I even liked children, I would read this book aloud to them and hopefully they’d get scared.

[Suvi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although Babbitt's stories didn't quite charm me the way they have charmed others, they're a clever and refreshing choice for those who want an entertaining children's book with a few lessons here in there, but nothing that is schmalzy or underestimates children. The title alone can cause the most moralistic and religious people to freak out (the book has in fact been challenged by parents in some American schools, which just tells me they either didn't bother reading it or refused to understand it), but the truth is that in these fable-like stories Mr. Satan himself learns a few things about people and their ability to resist him and his tricks.

[Shannon O'Hara · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Devil's Storybook is banned due to religious beliefs and overall personal beliefs. This book is about different stories of the devil entering the real world and his adventures and tricks. It also brings up the subject hell and which some families believe and don't. This book was banned due too parents not wanting their kids to hear stories of the devil or hell and teachers may have beliefs and don't feel comfortable reading it aloud or don't support what content is in the book.

I personally feel like the overall stories were well written and interesting but I do have to agree that I wouldn't be comfortable as a teacher reading this book to my students due to my beliefs and if my students have different beliefs then others. If I ever had to read this to my students I would take an approach of sending a letter home with my students letting their parents know what book we would read and whats it about so they can decide if they want their kid apart of that or not. In a classroom you have to remember each student may have a different beliefs or religions and books like The Devils Storybook has content that could upset students or even their parents due to what is said. I also feel personally like the book influences kids that being a trickster or causing mischief is okay and I wouldn't read that to my students because I don't want to teach my students that's okay.

[Suzanne Fournier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly one of the best books I've ever read. I absolutely adore books especially for children that tread on the darker side and are mischievous without malice. I love Natalie Babbitt and found a copy of the sequel to this in a used bookstore. I'd never heard of it but I'm delighted to have found it and will try to find a copy of this one for myself.

[Saria · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you follow through with my reviews, you'll know that one of my favorite genres is children's storybooks - or rather adult children's storybooks. I picked up this book at a used book market for peanuts and read it as part of my Fall TBR.

Let's start with just how pretty the cover is then move on to how adorable the premise is: The Devil gets bored in Hell and often goes up to the World to annoy people. He switches road signs, he steals mean goats, and he teases arrogant young men.
These schemes are cute, smart, and appropriate for a children's and adult's book for 3 reasons.
1) They're naughty but not evil, which is as much as a small child would perceive.
2) They're sarcastic with between-the-lines meanings that adults would pick up on.
3) They show that bad people don't need to be justified with miserable lives, "bad" doesn't have to be evil, and even bad experiences sometimes lead to positive outcomes.

I breezed through the book in quite a few hours in total, however, as I've recently quit my job and am preparing to relocate, this was spread out across a few days. In all cases, if you're looking for a fun, funny, quick, and fall-ish read, pick this one up.

[Caroline · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this discarded library book at a garage sale and I'm so glad I picked it up. It's a truly unique book of tales featuring the Devil in various adventures and plots to pull one over on someone else. Sometimes he succeeds, sometimes he fails. Another reviewer said that it's usually the character with the least common sense that loses in the end, and I agree with this. Sometimes he's the sensible one who's stuck with incompetent minions (and I end up feeling bad for him!)

This book is unique because, well, I can't imagine too many people reading a book about the Devil to their children. I mean, I would, if I had children, but I certainly couldn't get away with it at a children's storytime reading in the library!

[Dionisia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining, light read. Each of the ten stories revolve around the Devil himself in some way or other.

Contents...

Wishes
The Very Pretty Lady
The Harps of Heaven
The Imp in the Basket*
Nuts
A Palindrome***
Ashes
Perfection**
The Rose and the Minor Demon
The Power of Speech

*This was my favorite story of the bunch. I loved the ambiguity of it all.

**A close second for favorite story. The ending clinched it as a standout

***This one sticks with me as well. Even when the Devil doesn't get his way, we can still lose.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

These very brief stories were actually a delight to read. The come across as fables, each with a short moral. My daugher had requested the book from the library because she wanted to read as much Natalie Babbitt as she could, after watching Tuck Everlasting on television. My daughter, too, enjoyed these stories. It only takes about an hour to read through the entire book, but the writing flows nicely and most of the stories were quite enjoyable to read.

[Young At Heart Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute little storybook about the Devil getting into shenanigans. Some are kind of structured like fables or morality tales and others are just silly little anecdotes. I was surprised that this is the same woman who wrote Tuck Everlasting, but the prose and pictures have a distinct charm to them. I definitely laughed every once in a while at the odd humor. It's just an extremely quick and simple read that I needed in between books right now.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Latest reread: 2021. I picked it up because I found myself thinking about 2 of my favorite stories ("A Palindrome" and "Perfection," if you're curious). Was pleased to rediscover the stories I'd forgotten.

Still love it.

-----
First read: 1988? I don't even know anymore, but I was a little kid!

Still one of my favorite books. I think back on the stories often.

[Summer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short collection of young adult stories about the dealings of the Devil in and out of Hell and the poor ones he tries to torture or just decides to make their lives a living hell. This is a book written with great humor and irony. If only the Devil would learn from his own mistakes! ;)

Clever and well written. Same author as Tuck Everlasting.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

My sister gave me this book and I was sick, so I read it all at once. I remember some of these delightful stories from anthologies, stories that stuck in my head (the one about the minor demon and the rose inspired a whole art phase in high school) for a long, long time. I didn't have a voice to read them aloud, but I'm so glad to have them to do so. Brilliant one and all.

[Julianna Martin · Rating 1 out of 5]

If my mother could see me now she would be quaking with anger. The Devil's Storybook has definitely been a challenge for me to read for a variety of reasons. As a Catholic, even the idea of reading about Satan in jest is to me, a betrayal to God. So this was something I had to take seriously and realize that I was reading this only for scholarly purposes and not as a means of morally evil entertainment. In the eyes of a writer and a reader, however, I will acknowledge that although this was written with the wrong intentions it was written very well and to the eyes of someone non-religious be found very entertaining.

It is very clear why this book is challenged. Because America is still run by a predominately innately Christian value system and because much of the population recognizes the evil of Satan, of course, most schools would ban this book. The most notable challenger to this story was the Chestnut Ridge Middle School in Washington Township, in which parents forced the school to release contracts allowing the students to read about the occult. Parents didn't want to expose their children and allow them to be influenced by the devil or let their child be pushed into thinking that Satan was to be taken lightly.

My personal view on this is that there is no reason why I should be the one to expose someone's child to the evils of Satan even in a comical way. As a Christian and as a teacher it is simply not my place to do this and it goes against my beliefs and violates my religious freedom as well as my student's religious freedom. Now if a parent wishes for their child to read this then they can do this on their own time. But I refuse to do this as it goes against everything I believe. The devil is depicted as more of a cartoonish feign as well as charming, clever, wise and likable which I believe is a mockery of the true hate and violence of who he is. This book is under no circumstances appropriate for a classroom.

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compilation of two themed short-story collections, The Devil's Storybook and The Devil's Other Storybook, featuring fable-like, efficient, funny stories in which the Devil tries to make trouble for the world in various ways (kidnapping a particularly handsome goat he likes, offering people wishes to make them miserable, looking for a wife) and is often easily shut down by wise and discerning people, or triumphs over vain and foolish people.

There are bits and pieces of really gorgeous writing in here — the description of what the Devil does with a woman's beauty after stealing it from her in a fit of pique is particularly poetic — but mostly, these are lean, quirky fairy tales that don't particularly touch on religion or feel like they belong to any belief system — they might as well be Anansi stories, or Coyote stories, where someone vain, mischievous, and tricky sometimes comes out on top, and sometimes gets tricked himself. These were favorites of mine when I was a kid, because growing up constantly being warned about the Devil, then reading stories that treat him as kind of a hapless, clever, but easily fooled bully felt so subversive. But also because these stories are playful, lively, and funny, while still bringing across broad and worthwhile moral messages about, essentially, not being a jerk.

[Jenna Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

When first looking at the cover and title, it is no wonder this book was on the American Library Association's list of controversial books. Parents complained about "The Devil's Storybook" in 2003 because they were uncomfortable with their children reading books about the occult. This book may also be controversial also because of the way it portrays heaven and hell, the devil, and angels. When actually reading the book, it is clear that this book is a compilation of short stories that show how the good in people can overcome the devil's tries to trick them. The book is not only praising some characters for being content instead of greedy and other positive traits, but it also shows that pride or arguing can lead to a trip to hell. The illustrations at the end of each chapter perfectly capture and summarize the main idea of the chapter, and often portray the short story as humorous. The ability for people and the devil to move between heaven, hell, and the world is a different view than most religions teach, but the book does preach good traits and is therefore not going to encourage children to act in devilish ways. I would encourage parents to read the book and evaluate their own views and beliefs before giving the book to their children.

[Jenna Fenstermaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book filled with whimsical, clever stories. I first picked it off the library shelf because it was on the ALA list of frequently challenged books. I can see why people would challenge it before reading (because the main character is the devil), but in my opinion, this book is not meant to be offensive to anyone. The devil is not romanticized, and merely acts like the main character of most other stories. I particularly loved the first story, in which the devil tries to trick people by dressing as a fairy godmother and offering them one wish to be granted. I love the cleverness of each story and the twists at the end of each one. Overall, this is a great book! I would definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to smile while reading short tales about the devil being a trickster.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was in a Storytelling workshop today, and this was one of the options on the table presented for learning. It's not the story I eventually chose to learn, but I did steal the book anyway to take home and immediately devour. This is a quick little book of stories appropriate for children, twisty and sharply funny. Hell is Evil, but it's also just A Place To Be, and it's a pleasant dissonance. Also in the very first story, the Devil dresses up as a fairy godmother and goes out to make trouble, and it goes on being delightful from there.

I am absolutely going to go read more of Babbitt's work, because that kind of dry wit is worth following

[Adam Carman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had never heard of this before but I pulled an author signed copy of the free table at my school and leafed through it for fun. It's quite amusing. Obviously the devil in this story isn't evil incarnate but more a nuisance supreme and his antics seem more designed to annoy than anything. Some of my more theologically astute friends will have issues with that. But the stories were whimsical and fun. Babbitt is a tremendous storyteller and it was nice to read something very different from my usual fare but something that also was nostalgic for the kinds of books I read as a child.

[Dill E. Dally · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 1-star reviews of this book, to me, demonstrate the degree to which we have learned to be afraid of enjoying anything to do with the devil — even delighting in the humor of his self-inflicted humiliation. It is easy to see why he is thought to be so powerful. Natalie Babbitt manages to take that power away with these stories. They are not only humorous, but thought-provoking too. Sometimes I laughed out loud, only to be struck dumb by the final line, prompting a brief stare down with the wall to decide on my final thoughts before I moved on. Brilliant.

[Steven R. McEvoy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read Tuck Everlasting in a children's literature course back in 1999. I enjoyed it so much I tracked down a few other books by Babbitt and enjoyed them just as much.

This is a collection of short stories about the Devil. They read as moral lessons, much like Grimm's fairy tales. Each has a different point and purpose. It was a fun interesting book to read. I was never able to find a volume 1, The Devil's Storybook.

(First written as Journal Reading Notes in 1999.)

[Shaina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute collection of brief, funny stories about the devil and his antics. The amount of times the devil gets embarrassed or attempts creative problem-solving was a delight to read - we’ve all been there! My favorite story was about the goat with the bell, in which everyone was ornery and unpleasant all around (which was very, very funny). I also liked the story in which the devil pretended to be a fairy godmother.

[Sabrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

as a Christian, it makes me a bit uncomfortable to see the devil humanized and portrayed as light hearted. id prefer if the story centered on some made up figure, but the story was overall pretty amusing and the writing was really charming.


style: 3.5 stars
atmosphere: 3.5 stars
language: 3.5 stars
characters: 3.5 stars
plot: 4 stars
enjoyment: 3.5 stars
overall: 3.5 stars

[Felicia Means · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea what to expect from this joyful little book, but I must confess it was thrilling. There is a tale related to fortune telling and the second page into the story there was a Canadian 20 dollar note stashed on the page where the character finds a bag of money. I bought this book on thrift books and now it will go in my shelf with classics. Fabulous.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun little book with a mischief-loving devil who just can't seem to win. It was like reading the old folk tales with one protagonist a little wiser than the foolish character where you can't help smiling at his/her predicament and the clever solution. Enjoy!

[Linda Spear · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great creation this book is, both for children AND adults. Some very funny stuff and many thoughtful moments as well. Sometimes, the Devil is outwitted and he retreats to his home "down there".

[Brittany · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Natalie Babbitt's writing. These were no exception. They were short, cute, and I found myself laughing on multiple occasions. There were also some deeper thoughts within that could be delved into if desired, but if not you could just enjoy the stories at face value.