Customer Reviews

English Fairy Tales

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

These stories were written in a rough tone and have an unpolished feel to them. This is not necessarily a detraction, and some tales were better than other, but it was occasionally wearying to read them in the poor grammar of colloquial speech. Hence, four stars. Also, it lacks an interactive table of contents.

Tales included are;

Tom Tit Tot
The Three Sillies
The Rose-Tree
The Old Woman and Her Pig
How Jack Went to Seek His Fortune
Mr. Vinegar
Nix Nought Nothing
Jack Hannaford
Binnorie
Mouse and Mouser
Cap o'Rushes
Teeny-Tiny
Jack and the Beanstalk
The Story of the Three Little Pigs
The Master and His Pupil
Titty Mouse and Tatty Mouse
Jack and his Golden Snuff-Box
The Story of the Three Bears
Jack the Giant-Killer
Henny-Penny
Childe Rowland
Molly Whuppie
The Red Ettin
The Golden Arm
THe History of Tom Thumb
Mr. Fox
Lazy Jack
Johnny-Cake
Earl Mar's Daughter
Mr. Miacca
Whittington and his Cat
The Strange Visitor
The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh
The Cat and the Mouse
The Fish and the Ring
The Magpie's Nest
Kate Crackernuts
The Cauld Lad of Hilton
The Ass, the Table and the Stick
Fairy Ointment
The Well of the World's End
Master of All Masters
The Three Heads of the Well

This is, in fact, the collection of stories that Joseph Jacobs collected in the late 19th or early 20th century, inspired by the work of the Brothers Grimm. Jacobs traveled throughout the countryside of England, Scotland, and Ireland, and he wrote the stories down as much as possible in the language in which they were told to him -- old fashioned folklore collection. These collections used to be available in Dover Editions, although I don't know if they are still. (Do Dover books ever go out of print???) The table of contents is not navigable, which could be a nuisance, but free is a good price. You could try constructing your own "table of contents" using bookmarks or highlights....

The stories are enjoyable, and fun to read aloud to kids. I'd give it 5 stars if the table of contents were navigable, take off 2 for the nuisance factor, add one because it's free. Four seems fair.

Fairy tales are usually thought of as children's literature, and in terms of how much children in particular are fascinated with them this categorization is not without a merit. However, most good fairy tales tap into some social or personal tension, a fact of life, or a natural phenomenon. They often take rather ordinary situations and push them to the limit of what our imagination considers plausible. Fairy tales are thus a form of reductio ad absurdum of common sense, and they often help us see various life situations in terms of their most basic principles. This is why fairy tales have had, and continue to have, a lot of fascination with adults as well.

Most of us have grown up with fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen or Brothers Grimm. There is a sort of cannon of western fairy tales that have become part of the common patrimony of the entire world - Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Rapunzel, and many others. However, these fairy tales are only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the European fairy tales, and there are many other folk tales that are not as familiar as these and yet are equally beautiful and imaginative.

This collection of the English fairy tales is as great of a collection of fairy tales as they come. It is rather fascinating to see that even thought many fairy tales reflect certain English cultural norms, the basic structure and the motifs are surprisingly familiar. We have villains and heroes charged with an unusual and demanding task, monsters and unusual magical objects are everywhere, there are damsels-in-distress aplenty, and most tales take place "once upon a time." All of the tales are very well written and the language is crisp and contemporary. The dialogues, however, are replete with colloquial English expressions and turns of phrase, and these characteristics give the fairy tales a very folksy feel. This collection will be a great source of enjoyment for children and adults alike.

I have been collecting the Calla Editions' books since 2009. My first purchase was Tales of Mystery and Imagination (Calla Editions) and I was so impressed with the quality (wonderful illustrations, superior binding, etc.) that I began collecting the Calla books. Each and every book has been a delight, and not only have these books enhanced my home library, they have been a joy to peruse and read over and over again. Each book is illustrated by a well-known illustrator such as Arthur Rackham, Kay Nielsen, Chris Van Allsburg, etc. and the illustrations are the true highlights in each book.

In Calla Editions' English Fairy Tales, the illustrations are by Arthur Rackham, a renowned early 20th century British illustrator (who also provided the illustrations for Calla Editions' Grimm's Fairy Tales). This edition contains many of Rackham's amazing black and white illustrations, including silhouettes. In addition, there are sixteen large color plates.
For those who might be interested, here is a listing of the stories included in this edition:
St. George of Merrie England
The Story of the Three Bears
Tom-Tit-Tot
The Golden Snuff Box
Tattercoats
The Three Feathers
Lazy Jack
Jack the Giant-Killer
The Three Sillies
The Golden Ball
The Two Sisters
The Laidly Worm
Titty Mouse and Tatty Mouse
Jack and the Beanstalk
The Black Bull of Norroway
Catskin
The Three Little Pigs
Nix Naught Nothing
Mr. and Mrs. Vinegar
The True History of Sir Thomas Thumb
Henny-Penny
The Three Heads of the Well
Mr. Fox
Dick Whittington and His Cat
The Old Woman and Her Pig
The Wee Bannock
How Jack Went Out to Seek His Fortune
The Bogey-Beast
Little Red Riding-Hood
Childe Rowland
The Wise Men of Gotham
Caporushes
The Babes in the Wood
The Red Ettin
The Fish and the Ring
Lawkamercyme
Master of all Masters
Molly Whuppie and the Double-Faced Giant
The Ass, the Table, and the Stick
The Well of the World's End
The Rose Tree

These Calla Edition books are heirloom-quality and are a must-have for any collector and fan of well-illustrated, quality books.

THESE ARE A COLLECTION OF SOME OF THE VERY BEST FAIRY TALES EVER WRITTEN. THEY ARE ESSENTIALLY FOLK TALES IN THAT THOUGH THEY ARE MADE UP, THEY CANNOT AVOID REFLECTING THE LIFE OF LONG AGO. THE OLD LOCAL DIALECT HAS BEEN RETAINED THROUGHOUT IN THESE STORIES, INVESTING THEM WITH AUTHENTICITY, COLOR, INCIDENT, AND VITALITY. IMMENSELY READABLE AND ENJOYABLE FOR ALL AGES! REGINA CLARK

This books is excelent, very beautiful. The painting of artist Arthurd Rackham very good. Very recomended.English Fairy Tales (Calla Editions)

these stories are great! ..............If you are into scaring who you reading them to in pretty much EVERY story ends with some one dieing in a horrible way. drowning havimg there brains dashed? these arent fairy tales they are horrer books!