Form and Content
A doll made of an apple twig and a hickory nut is the protagonist of Carolyn Sherwin Bailey’s Newbery Medal-winning fantasy. Miss Hickory’s survival in a bird’s nest through a cold country winter combines brisk, ironic humor with touches of whimsy and poignancy to form a story with provocative and contradictory implications about motherhood and gender roles. Lively black-and-white drawings by Ruth Gannet illustrate the main event of each chapter, with special emphasis on Miss Hickory’s interactions with the various animals whom she encounters.
Miss Hickory opens as the doll’s crusty friend Crow informs her that the farm house is being shut up for the winter and that she must plan to move from her corn cob house under a lilac bush to a sturdier and warmer shelter. Initially disbelieving, Miss Hickory soon finds that she has indeed been forgotten by the departing family and must accept Crow’s help in finding her a new home in an empty robin’s nest.
A series of loosely connected adventures ensues. Her neighbor Squirrel inspires both scorn and fear as Miss Hickory alternately mocks him for forgetting where he has buried his nuts and considers the temptation that her own head might present to the hungry animal. She makes friends with the Hen-Pheasants, whose husbands have deserted them for the winter, and organizes them into a ladies’ aid society. At Christmas, Miss Hickory follows a solemn procession of animals to the barn, where her “hardheadedness,” a characteristic frequently emphasized in the text, prevents her from seeing a miraculous manifestation of Christ. Along the way, however, she does meet Fawn, who happily tells Miss Hickory that he expects to see his mother, a doe who died trying to protect him from a hunter’s bullets. With the approach of spring, Crow returns and takes Miss Hickory on an exhilarating flight high in the sky. Later, a frosty April morning finds her dislodging Bull Frog from the ice. She pulls him free not only from ice but also from his old skin as well.
Fate, however, does not reward her good deeds, for she returns to her nest to find that Robin has resumed occupancy. Remembering suddenly that she has not heard or seen Squirrel for quite some time, she decides to take over his hole. Squirrel, however, is still there and engages her in an acrimonious dispute that ends with Squirrel biting off Miss Hickory’s head. Although disengaged from its body, the head continues to think, recriminating itself for its past hardheadedness and selfishness until the Squirrel has eaten it completely. The little twig body, however, surges with life and runs to the apple tree, where it bonds to an upper branch.
The story closes as the little girl, Ann, returns to the farm and climbs the apple tree with her friend Timothy. Timothy explains that the apple twig, formerly Miss Hickory, is a scion, a new graft that has caused the old tree to bloom anew after years of infertility.
Setting
Set against the rustic backdrop of a New Hampshire homestead, the narrative unfolds primarily in the vicinity of Miss Hickory's quaint abode. The barn and sprawling fields play a significant role in her life. To Miss Hickory, whose stature is diminutive, this expanse of land stretches vast and boundless, a domain that looms large in her daily existence. The tale is not anchored in a specific era—it could easily belong to the nineteenth or twentieth century—but the rhythm of the seasons is central to Miss Hickory and her animal companions. As the story begins, the chill...
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of winter is on the horizon.
Literary Qualities
Imagery and Plot
Within the pages of Miss Hickory, imagery reigns supreme, eclipsing even the most unexpected plot turns. Bailey's enchanting vocabulary—words like "fellowfeeling," "two-legger," "cupboard love," and "up-boughs" alongside "down-boughs"—bring a poetic rhythm to her narrative. Her depictions burst with life, as vividly illustrated when Ann and Timothy trail Crow into an orchard awash with apple blossoms.
Surrounding Ann and Timothy, a sea of pink and white unfurled in every direction. The orchard stretched as far as the eye could see, a delicate pink veil against the fresh green backdrop of Temple Mountain. Worn and gnarled, each tree's aged branches were thickly cloaked in blossoms, yet as Timothy observed, the McIntosh trees outshone the rest with their dense, exquisite blooms.
Tonal Complexity
Conversely, the narrative tone of Miss Hickory poses intriguing questions. How should we perceive her? Can we truly connect with a character whose happiness stems from surrendering her distinct self to become one with a tree? Such inquiries invite readers to delve deeper, uncovering layers of complexity within the book that might not be immediately apparent.
For Further Reference
In-Depth Explorations
Commire, Anne, ed. "Carolyn Sherwin Bailey." In Something About the Author. Detroit: Gale, 1978. Within this volume, the editors have meticulously assembled an extensive catalog of Bailey's works, along with a captivating section where Bailey herself shares her insights on crafting stories for young minds.
Autobiographical Insights
Kunitz, Stanley, and Howard Haycraft, eds. The Junior Book of Authors. 2d ed. Revised. New York: Wilson, 1951. This edition unfolds an autobiographical essay that offers a glimpse into the personal narrative of the author.
Biographical Snapshots
Marquardt, Dorothy, and Martha Ward. Authors of Books for Young People. 2d ed. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1971. This concise entry delivers a succinct biography along with a curated list of Bailey's literary contributions.
