The Curly-Haired Hen

In Short

This fable follows the gentle Mother Etienne, a widow who pours her maternal affection into the diverse creatures of her farm. When a series of accidents leaves her prize hen, Yollande, plucked and shivering, the application of a mysterious peddler's ointment results in an impossible, curly-haired miracle. This charming, whimsical story explores the bond between humans and animals, the sudden sting of celebrity, and the rewards of kindness. It has endured as a quirky piece of turn-of-the-century European children's literature, balanced by its earnest moral and gentle humor.

The Story

The narrative begins on a peaceful farm where Mother Etienne, a kind-hearted widow, lives with her devoted staff—the stable boy Petit-Jacques and the maid Germaine—and a menagerie of well-loved animals. Her life is simple and industrious, defined by the market runs she makes with her horse, Coco, and her protective, doting care for the farm's poultry and livestock. The tranquility is shattered when Yollande, a Cochin-China hen, attempts to mother a brood of energetic ducklings. While trying to rescue them from a pond, Yollande suffers a near-drowning, leading the household to believe she has died.

In a mix-up that borders on the macabre, Germaine prepares the "deceased" hen for the stewpot, plucking her feathers entirely. Yet, as the hen is held over a flame, the heat triggers a miraculous revival. Yollande returns to life, bald and shivering, forcing her human companions to craft her a wardrobe of doll-like clothes to protect her sensitive skin. Her appearance creates a local spectacle, and she becomes an object of both fascination and bullying among the other farm animals.

The story takes a fantastical turn when Father Gusson, a traveling peddler, visits the farm and sells Mother Etienne an ointment meant to restore human hair. On a whim, Germaine applies it to Yollande’s head. To everyone’s astonishment, the hen sprouts a thick, curly wig. The effect is so striking that the secret is applied to the hen's entire body, resulting in a full, curly coat. Yollande’s fame spreads rapidly, attracting the attention of Sir Booum, a flamboyant American circus impresario. He offers a small fortune for the hen, and after much emotional turmoil and a vivid, anxiety-filled nightmare, Mother Etienne finally agrees to sell Yollande, ensuring her favorite creature will live in luxury.

Yollande leaves for the circus, where she is treated like a star. Mother Etienne, now wealthy, uses her windfall to provide a dowry for Germaine, who marries Petit-Jacques, and secures a comfortable retirement for Father Gusson. The peddler parlays his association with the hen into a successful business selling his ointment, causing a brief, localized craze where farmers across the region foolishly pluck their own livestock in hopes of replicating the miracle. The attempt fails, as Yollande remains a singular, incomparable marvel. The book concludes with the community living in prosperity and peace, still fondly toasting the memory of their famous, curly-haired friend.

How It Unfolds

The peaceful farmstead Mother Etienne lavishes care on her animals, including the fat horse Coco and the delicate ducklings. Life flows with simple, predictable grace until a maternal error leads to a startling crisis at the farm's pond.

The resurrection of Yollande Mistaken for dead, the plucked hen survives, only to find herself living in a doll-sized wardrobe. She faces ridicule from the other barnyard animals and develops a scrappy, defensive personality to cope with her vulnerability.

The miracle ointment A traveling peddler introduces a mysterious jar of hair-growth cream to the household. The subsequent application transforms the bald hen into a sensation, drawing crowds and the unwanted attention of a high-powered circus owner.

The circus departure A conflict of conscience tears at Mother Etienne as she considers the high price offered for her pet. After much soul-searching and a surreal dream about the nature of animals, she parts with the hen, believing she is ensuring its future.

The legacy of the hen The wealth from the sale brings happiness to the farm's human residents, allowing for marriages and comfortable futures. While the neighbors’ attempts to copy the hen’s success lead only to plucked, cold poultry, the memory of the extraordinary bird remains a local legend.

The People

Mother Etienne is the heart of the farm. Driven by a deep, maternal instinct to protect the weak, she finds purpose in caring for her animals. Her growth is marked by a transition from a simple, isolated life to one where she must balance her personal love for a creature against the promise of a life-changing fortune.

Yollande is the Cochin-China hen. Initially a patient mother figure, she becomes a victim of circumstance and eventually a reluctant celebrity. Her journey is one of physical and social transformation; from a bird who knows only the coop to one who struttingly wears clothes and eventually becomes a circus star.

Germaine is the buxom, energetic maid who acts as the catalyst for many of the book's events. Her impulsive, playful spirit—seen in her decision to try the ointment on the hen—eventually leads to her own prosperity, as she earns the dowry necessary to marry the stable boy she loves.

Father Gusson is the itinerant peddler who moves through the countryside with his donkey, Neddy. He begins as a humble salesman but finds his life transformed by the success of his "curly-haired" ointment, eventually becoming a prosperous, retired business owner.

In Its Own Voice

"Love animals, my children, be kind to them, care for them, and you will surely have your reward."

This moral sentiment, delivered by the grandfather to his children, sets the tone for the entire story, emphasizing the kindness Mother Etienne shows to her creatures.

"The weak need so much protection," this excellent woman would say, and she was right.

This quote perfectly captures Mother Etienne’s philosophy, which justifies her constant vigilance over the farm's most fragile inhabitants.

"He had perforce to content himself with portraits of her from the pen of M. Vimar."

This meta-commentary highlights the author’s role in documenting the legend of the hen after the real animal ceased to lay eggs and retired from her public life.

What It's Really About

At its core, this is a story about the sanctity of the domestic bond between humans and animals. It argues that empathy, when extended to the smallest creatures, creates a ripple effect of well-being that eventually rewards the caregiver. The book also touches upon the absurdity of fame; Yollande becomes a symbol of the "extraordinary" that people feel entitled to own, even though her true value lies in her simple existence. Beneath the whimsical plot, the book poses a question: what is the true price of an animal’s dignity when pitted against the forces of commerce and the human desire for wonder?

Why Read It Today

Readers who appreciate the gentle, moralizing tone of late 19th-century children's literature will find this book an endearing artifact. It feels like a long, fireside chat, filled with a warm, conversational quality that prioritizes the comfort of the listener. The story is distinctly of its time—there are period-specific attitudes toward animals and labor, and the premise relies on a "fairytale" logic that modern readers might find jarring or illogical. However, these quirks are part of the book's charm. It is a slow, rhythmic read that captures the feeling of a bygone, slower-paced era of rural life.

You will likely enjoy this if you have a fondness for anthropomorphic tales or if you find humor in the way humans react to the truly bizarre. It isn’t a high-stakes adventure, but rather a character-driven look at how a small, rural community deals with a sudden brush with the surreal. Be prepared for a narrative that meanders through dreams and reflections, reflecting the author’s own affection for the characters he created. It stays with you because of its central image: the image of a hen in a tailor-made suit, a testament to the strange lengths we go to when we love something truly, deeply, and perhaps a bit too much.