Rabbi and the Twenty Nine Witches [Paperback]

Marilyn Hirsh (Author)

Book Description

Once a month, when the moon is full, twenty-nine of the meanest, scariest, ugliest, wickedest witches that ever lived come out of their cave to terrify the villagers . . . until one day the wise rabbi invents a plan to rid his village of those wicked witches forever. The rabbi's clever plan works--with hilarious results!

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Marilyn Hirsh, a children’s author and illustrator, incorporated her Peace Corps experience in India and her Jewish heritage into much of her work, written and visual. Her interests in art and history also surfaced at the Indian art courses she taught at two New York colleges. In 1988, she died of cancer at the young age of 44.

In 1978, Hirsh received both the Asian Cultural Center UNESCO prize and the Noma Concours Award for children’s picture book illustrations for The Elephants and the Mice. The next year, she won the Sydney Taylor Body-Of-Work Award, and in 1986 Joseph Who Loved The Sabbath earned the Sydney Taylor Children’s Book Award. She garnered several other awards for her writing and illustrating before her death in October 1988. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks; First Edition edition (April 1977)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0590103156
• ISBN-13: 978-0590103152
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 5.8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,568,733 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Marilyn Hirsh, a children's author and illustrator, incorporated her Peace Corps experience in India and her Jewish heritage into much of her work, written and visual. Her interests in art and history also surfaced at the Indian art courses she taught at two New York colleges. In 1988, she died of cancer at the young age of 44.

In 1978, Hirsh received both the Asian Cultural Center UNESCO prize and the Noma Concours Award for children's picture book illustrations for "The Elephants and the Mice". The next year, she won the Sydney Taylor Body-Of-Work Award, and in 1986 "Joseph Who Loved The Sabbath" earned the Sydney Taylor Children's Book Award. She garnered several other awards for her writing and illustrating before her death in October 1988.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Story., October 12, 2002

By 

tvtv3 "tvtv3" (Sorento, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Rabbi and the Twenty Nine Witches (Paperback)

Every full moon a town is plagued by twenty-nine witches. However, when it rains the witches never appear. The older people in the town want to see a full moon before they die and they approach a rabbi to seek help.

This is a wonderful story. It reminded me of many of the old "So-and-so" versus the Devil stories (e.g. The Devil and Daniel Webster) prominent in early American and American folk literature. It does have one horrendous event, but ends happily.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For witch lovers and fearers alike, January 3, 2011

By 

hewittwalker - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rabbi and the Twenty-nine Witches (Hardcover)

I got this book for my nephew for his 6th birthday - he loves witches. The witches are no longer by the end of this book, but not without some feeling of regret among the brave men who take them on, led by the wise rabbi. Great story, wonderful illustrations. My 5-year old daughter wants her own copy now and I agree that borrowing it periodically from the library will not suffice.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Rabbi and the Twenty-nine Witches, December 28, 2009

By 

Jewish Book World Magazine (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Rabbi and the Twenty-nine Witches (Hardcover)

When I think back on the Jewish literature of my childhood, one book stands out: The Rabbi and the Twenty-nine Witches. Twenty-some years later, the elementary school students in our congregation held a readers' choice award competition, and their love of this 1976 classic not only made it a nominee, but the ultimate winner. Now, repeated pleas from across the Jewish community bring this Talmudic tale back into print. Appearing just as it first did 33 years ago, this tale of how one rabbi leads a group of men to rid their town of a nearby coven of witches, with its black, white, and blue watercolor illustrations, is clearly timeless in its appeal. Kids love the subject, and have never encountered some of these characters in Jewish literature before. It is at once refreshing and authentic. The book not only makes a great read-aloud; hearing it compels children to pick it up for a closer look at the details of the illustrations and another read of the story. A must-buy for Jewish collections, as your old copy is probably dog-eared and falling apart from all the love it has received over the years. For ages 5-10.
Tasha Bergon-Michelson