The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling

As we have already seen, Beedle's first two tales attracted criticism of their themes of generos-ity, tolerance and love. "The Warlock's Hairy Heart", however, does not appear to have been modified or much criticised in the hundreds of years since it was first written; the story as I eventually read it in the original runes was almost exactly that which my mother had told me. That said, "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" is by far the most gruesome of Beedle's offerings, and many parents do not share it with their children until they think they are old enough not to suffer nightmares.[8]

[8] According to her own diary, Beatrix Bloxam never recovered from overhearing this story being told by her aunt to her older cousins. "Quite by accident, my little ear fell against the keyhole. I can only imagine that I must have been paralysed with horror, for I inadvertently heard the whole of the disgusting story, not to mention ghastly details of the dreadfully unsavoury affair of my uncle Nobby, the local hag and a sack of Bouncing Bulbs. The shock almost killed me; I was in bed for a week, and so deeply traumatised was I that I developed the habit of sleepwalking back to the same keyhole every night, until at last my dear papa, with only my best interests at heart, put a Sticking Charm on my door at bedtime." Apparently Beatrix could find no way to make "The Warlock's Hairy Heart" suitable for children's sensitive ears, as she never rewrote it for The Toadstool Tales.