SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Bubble, bubble, pasta pot. Boil me some pasta, nice and hot. Parents and teachers have been reading those words out loud for 50 years now. That is right - Strega Nona, the pasta witch from children's literature, turns 50. The picture books have been both beloved and banned. Half a century later, the Italian grandmother still finds new audiences, even on TikTok. Alex V. Cipolle with member station Minnesota Public Radio explores why Strega Nona endures.
(SOUNDBITE OF PAPER RUSTLING)
ALEX V CIPOLLE, BYLINE: In her office overlooking the Mississippi River, curator Lisa Von Drasek begins to read.
LISA VON DRASEK: (Reading) In Calabria, a long time ago, there lived an old lady everyone called Strega Nona, which meant Grandma Witch.
CIPOLLE: Von Drasek is the curator of the Kerlan Collection of Children's Literature at the University of Minnesota. She flips to the title page. There's a doodle of Strega Nona drawn in pen by the author Tomie dePaola.
VON DRASEK: (Reading) For the Kerlan Collection, with love and three kisses.
CIPOLLE: The East Coast author, who died in 2020, wrote more than 250 books. He gave the University dozens of manuscripts and illustrations, including the original watercolors for "Strega Nona."
VON DRASEK: This is pen and ink and watercolor.
(SOUNDBITE OF PAPER RUSTLING)
VON DRASEK: You see? Look at her dancing. So that's the title page.
CIPOLLE: DePaola was connected to Minnesota through Karen Nelson Hoyle. Nelson Hoyle was the previous children's literature curator and a mentor to dePaola. Von Drasek, who was also friends with dePaola, explains he wanted people of all ages to have access to his work.
VON DRASEK: And he wanted us to have these because we're open access. I have classes with 8-year-olds, I have classes with graduate students, and all of them have the opportunity to hold these materials in their hands and say, oh, a human being did this.
CIPOLLE: Von Drasek says that, despite the book's gentle nature, it's been the target of book bans because it portrays witches in a positive light. Even so, dePaola won a Caldecott Honor Award, given by the American Library Association annually for distinguished children's picture books. In an interview with the City University of New York, dePaola said Strega Nona was his favorite character he ever created.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
TOMIE DEPAOLA: She's a charming character, and I'm even amazed by her. She strikes a chord in everyone. You know, you don't have to be Italian to love Strega Nona.
CIPOLLE: With magic powers and a pasta pot, Strega Nona heals and feeds her little Italian village. When her young apprentice, Big Anthony, secretly tries to use her spell, the town is overcome with spaghetti. The village people call for corporal punishment, but Strega Nona remains patient and kind.
VON DRASEK: But there are consequences. Here's a fork, Big Anthony.
CIPOLLE: And she tells him to eat all the pasta. Von Drasek says dePaola was similar to Strega Nona.
VON DRASEK: I never saw him impatient with a child, with a parent. He exuded kindness.
CIPOLLE: Von Drasek says Strega Nona is a poignant character because she's a resourceful, wise woman - a witch.
VON DRASEK: When we think of Strega Nona, Tomie dePaola's illustrations are all so sweet and gentle, and it's not scary at all.
CIPOLLE: Half a century later, new audiences have found Strega Nona. She's even become a TikTok trend.
VON DRASEK: Why "Strega Nona"? It's a picture book that's like a hug.
CIPOLLE: For NPR News, I'm Alex V. Cipolle In Minneapolis. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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