Customer Reviews

Andersen's Fairy Tales (Illustrated Junior Library)

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I think that most of us have been exposed to at least some of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales. If we haven't read them, we, of previous generations, have probably seen the movie of his life starring Danny Kaye, and any child who watches television has probably seen a Disney version of "The Ugly Duckling."

While these, and similar productions are entertaining, they "prettify" his stories. what I mean by this is that many of his tales have very sad endings and/or have dark gloomy atmospheres. Not all, but many.

For example, "The Little Match Girl" tells the tale of a poverty stricken child whose father sends her out on a freezing New Year's Eve to sell matchsticks. She is afraid to come home without having made any money, as her father will punish her. As the night grows colder, she lights the matchsticks one by one for a drop of warmth. In the flare of each match, she sees visions of her grandmother in heaven, and with the last match her grandmother descends from heaven and takes the little girl in her arms. In the morning, her frozen body is found.

In "The Red Shoes," a little girl is given a pair of red shoes which she feels are the most wonderful things in the world, she values them above everyone and everything, and even at her own communion can think of nothing other than how beautiful she looks in her red shoes. These shoes prove to be her death, as they cause her to dance for days on end until she finally had to have the executioner chop off her feet so she could stop dancing. Then, and only then, with stumps for feet, did she repent for her conceit. As in many of Andersen's fairy tales there is an obvious moral here.

Some other old favorites such as "The Ugly Duckling" and the Emperor's New Clothes" are included.

I think that this is a very good English translation of the included tales, but what makes this book stand out are Arthur Szck's illustrations. There is no copyright date in my copy, but I'm sure it is over 50 years old, and even so, Szck's color illustrations are each and every one worthy of framing. In bright, bold colors, and frequently with an oriental feeling, they are just plain wonderful. I fell in love with them, and I'd bet that most readers would too.