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84th out of 281 books
—
436 voters
The Brixen Witch
by
Stacy DeKeyser (Goodreads Author),
John Nickle
An enchanted coin. A witch’s curse. And rats, rats everywhere! What’s a boy to do? “Fresh and satisfying for middle grade readers” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review).When Rudi Bauer accidentally takes a witch’s coin, he unleashes her curse. Accident or not, he knows he’s got to fix things, so he tries to return the coin, only to lose it on the witch’s magic mountain just as...more
Hardcover, 208 pages
Published
June 26th 2012
by Margaret K. McElderry Books
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A lively, fun read with engaging characters and clever twists in the plot. Rudi is a likable lad and benefits from sharing his rat-filled tale with a cast of wonderful and endearing characters.
I am a fan of fairytales re-imagined and this one did not disappoint. This version of the Pied Piper is a fresh take on the original. The POV is from one of the village children, a boy named Rudi who lives in the shadow of the Berg, a forboding mountain which is home to the Brixon witch.
When Rudi finds a golden guilder outside of a cave in the mountain, he begins to hear a haunting melody. Seems the witch is looking for her stolen treasure. Thus begins a series of misfortunes that threatens the...more
When Rudi finds a golden guilder outside of a cave in the mountain, he begins to hear a haunting melody. Seems the witch is looking for her stolen treasure. Thus begins a series of misfortunes that threatens the...more
Retelling of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. Well paced, and suspenseful, but not too scary for little kids. Would be a fun read-aloud.
This is a great book for elementary / middle school aged kids. I loved the length and pacing. I will definitely be recommending it to some of my middle school students this school year.
This well-paced, well-written fantasy/adventure, with plot twists and a brave young hero, will charm readers of all ages.
Originally posted at Random Musings of a Bibliophile.
I'm always on the lookout for good retellings and so was interested in The Brixen Witch by Stacy DeKeyser as soon as I heard of it. The book is a retelling of The Pied Piper of Hamelin. How many of those can be found?
The Pied Piper is one of those tales that always leaves one scratching one's head. What did the Piper do with the children once he lured them away? Why on earth would the Piper think that kidnapping a town full of children was sui...more
I'm always on the lookout for good retellings and so was interested in The Brixen Witch by Stacy DeKeyser as soon as I heard of it. The book is a retelling of The Pied Piper of Hamelin. How many of those can be found?
The Pied Piper is one of those tales that always leaves one scratching one's head. What did the Piper do with the children once he lured them away? Why on earth would the Piper think that kidnapping a town full of children was sui...more
From July 2012 SLJ:
Gr 4-6:�When 12-year-old Rudi finds a golden guilder while hunting, he can't wait to share the news at home. But unearthly noises haunt him, even safely in his village, and his grandmother tells him that if he has taken something from the Brixen witch, she will not rest until it is returned. The next day, he sets out to return the coin, but an avalanche buries it before he can do so. For months, he is tormented by nightmares and feels at ease only when they finally fade. When...more
Gr 4-6:�When 12-year-old Rudi finds a golden guilder while hunting, he can't wait to share the news at home. But unearthly noises haunt him, even safely in his village, and his grandmother tells him that if he has taken something from the Brixen witch, she will not rest until it is returned. The next day, he sets out to return the coin, but an avalanche buries it before he can do so. For months, he is tormented by nightmares and feels at ease only when they finally fade. When...more
Oct 07, 2012
Phoebe
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Deborah, Cheryl
Shelves:
fairy-tale-retelling,
juv
Rudi picks up a gold coin on the mountain, and is soon given to understand the horror of what he has done. According to his grandmother, the coin belongs to the Brixen Witch, and she will send her servant to get it back. Nightmares trail Rudi all winter, since the mountain is too dangerous to climb until spring. When the snows clear, he climbs to the spot where he found the coin, but slips--the coin won't come free of his pocket, but at last he is able to toss it away. Everything seems back to n...more
Despite "The Brixen Witch" being written for young adults, I, at 21 years old, thought it was a great book. I found the writing to be very smooth and the story to be clearly presented, two qualities that I consider extremely important in a young adult book. I read this book in one afternoon, and the last 100 pages went especially quickly. Numerous plot twists and little bits of comic relief kept me hooked until the ending, which had me teary-eyed (in a good, cathartic way). Similar to many of th...more
I won this book on goodreads from the program firstreads:
I chose this book for mine and my sons bedtime stories for a few weeks choosing a chapter a night. I loved this story and so did he! The characters were so fun and the story was very suspenseful, with the wise Oma and the boy who just couldn't resist temptation and took something off the mountain that belonged to the Brixon witch. In the story all of the witches belongings sang music so that her assistant could track them down and find the...more
I chose this book for mine and my sons bedtime stories for a few weeks choosing a chapter a night. I loved this story and so did he! The characters were so fun and the story was very suspenseful, with the wise Oma and the boy who just couldn't resist temptation and took something off the mountain that belonged to the Brixon witch. In the story all of the witches belongings sang music so that her assistant could track them down and find the...more
Thank you for a most entertaining tale. Rudi is the boy every child knows and the members of his family and town are easily envisioned. The tale of how one simple act can have an effect on a whole community and the value of age and experience passed down through generations in story and rhyme make this a fairy tale for all ages. Adults will find the descriptions and actions of the townspeople as they deal with their problems both funny and telling as they can see themselves and friends in the ch...more
We read this aloud with our almost 7 year old son, and thoroughly enjoyed it. It had just enough suspense and darkness to make us cozy up to each other as we read, but enough reality to keep us grounded, deeply rooted in the story. The village of Brixen was as real to us as any town, its residents like people we've known. The elders, the children, the cobblestones, the rats: all of it so vivid and real. The story was compelling, keeping us on the edge of our seats. We rushed home from school, wo...more
A nice little book that combines the story of the Pied Piper with a much larger, character-driven narrative. I particularly like the way it works in the character of the witch as village wise-woman and caretaker from afar. I think this one would work particularly well as a family read-aloud.
Rudi is out hunting high up on the Berg that looms over his village one day when he stumbles upon a valuable golden coin. A freezing storm chases him back home, and he's sure it's the wrath of the witch. His...more
Rudi is out hunting high up on the Berg that looms over his village one day when he stumbles upon a valuable golden coin. A freezing storm chases him back home, and he's sure it's the wrath of the witch. His...more
As an updated Pied Piper tale, this tale will be well received by fantasy and adventure lovers. Twelve year old Rudi can not resist temptation and takes a gold coin that belongs to the Brixen Witch, the witch who is rumored to live high above the village of Brixen. This act sets in motion a variety of events which include storms, mysterious music, magic, and a rat infestation in Brixen. Rudi, believing that these acts are because of his misjudgment of taking the coin, decides it is up to him to...more
First line:
Rudi Bauer ran for his life and cursed his bad luck."
Beehive Award Nominee
I liked this retelling of the Pied Piper. I really liked Rudi and how he changed and grew in throughout the book. Great middle grade story and I would recommend it to any family!
Rating: G
Liked:
Pied Piper retelling
Rudi
Rudi's growth
The witch!
Didn't like:
Well, the rats. Not that I'm afraid of rats but there were soooo many! yuck!
Rudi Bauer ran for his life and cursed his bad luck."
Beehive Award Nominee
I liked this retelling of the Pied Piper. I really liked Rudi and how he changed and grew in throughout the book. Great middle grade story and I would recommend it to any family!
Rating: G
Liked:
Pied Piper retelling
Rudi
Rudi's growth
The witch!
Didn't like:
Well, the rats. Not that I'm afraid of rats but there were soooo many! yuck!
When Rudi finds a golden coin and realizes it belongs to the Brixen Witch, he tries to return it, only to lose it. Now, tormented by nightmares, things go from bad to worse when the town is infested with rats. Can Rudi turn the bad luck around? This retelling of the Pied Piper of Hamlin has some interesting twists and lessons about magic. Recommended to upper elementary and middle school.
A fun retelling of The Pied Piper that was intriguing in all the right ways. When Rudi mistakenly annoys a powerful witch, he’ll do almost anything to make things right for his village. Relying upon his bravery and his grandmother’s advice, Rudi ventures to the witch’s cave by himself and discovers that all is not as it seems. A quick, accessible and suspenseful read!
I find this one hard to talk about, but I think the strength lies in the narrow focus of this book. It's not about Rudi's life every day, it's about Rudi's interactions with the witch of Brixen and how he gets involved with her in the first place.
I really enjoyed this book, a well-written tale filled with interesting characters. A story of magic, rats, and witches, what's not to like? I'm looking forward to reading more of young Rudi Bauer's adventures.
It was a good story, but a little blase. Kinda boring as well, which is why I put it as 3 stars. Honestly I've read better Pied Piper retellings.
It took a while for me to get into this book but once I did, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
SM
A middle-grade retelling of The Pied Piper. I liked the main character a lot and the story went in interesting directions while remaining fairly close to the original.
Meh. There were definitely some scary bits, tense bits, and an overall decent pace. But kids looking for scary/tense are going to have a hard time picking this one up.
Well, I wrote it. So I think it's a good book. ;)
could have ha as more
May 16, 2013
Sian Jones
marked it as to-read
May 11, 2013
Rebecca
is currently reading it
May 02, 2013
Denise Parzych Seyfer
marked it as to-read
May 02, 2013
kureha
marked it as to-read
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Praise for
The Brixen Witch
from Margaret K. McElderry Books:
"Fresh and satisfying." -- KIRKUS starred review
"Just right for reaffirming one's belief in the power of story." -- BOOKLIST starred review
~ "Deftly updates the Pied Piper's tale" -- Richard Peck, Newbery Award-winning author of A Year Down Yonder
~ "With lilting language and a unique voice, DeKeyser spins a tale like no other. I loved it!...more
More about Stacy DeKeyser...
"Fresh and satisfying." -- KIRKUS starred review
"Just right for reaffirming one's belief in the power of story." -- BOOKLIST starred review
~ "Deftly updates the Pied Piper's tale" -- Richard Peck, Newbery Award-winning author of A Year Down Yonder
~ "With lilting language and a unique voice, DeKeyser spins a tale like no other. I loved it!...more
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