Customer Reviews

Hansel and Gretel

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

 

 

I always loved this story but now I found a new rendition which is so original and creative that I love it even more. I just purchased two copies of this book from Amazon for my son's first grade class. The children all LOVED it! Some found it scary, which is good, but not so scary that they didn't want the teacher to read it 5 times! My son came home with drawings he had done in class based on the book illustrations. I have already discovered The Ugly Duckling, done in the same style as Hansel and Gretel, and love this book too. I think the collage work is great and I am a want to be artist so really appreciate the work that went into the artwork. I greatly admire Ms. Isadora and have been a fan for years.
I think everyone interested in children's books will enjoy this book....both young and old.

Rachel Isadora retells fairy tales beautifully. I teach 4th grade in Brooklyn, NY. The children love when I read her stories. It is nice to see fairy tales that include people of different ethnic backgrounds. Not only that, her illustrations are beautiful! My eyes love looking at each page. Her books are worth buying at any price!

I love to discover new renditions of this story. I have quite a large collection of this story dating back to one printed in Germany from the 1930s. I think this is the most original that has come down the pike since. Isadora has found a great balance between originality, great art, scary business for children and fun. I will proudly add this book to my library and hope librarians do too....all over the country. Cheers to Ms. Isadora and Putnam Publishers!

"Hansel and Gretel" is one of the new books that are out there that re-tell traditional stories in an African setting. In this case, both the text and the artwork is by Rachel Isadora, who has also done "Rapunzel" Rapunzel and "Princess and the Pea" The Princess and the Pea.

Isadora's artwork in this book is delightful. It's bright and abstract and full of the emotion of subtle brushstrokes. The story, for those who are interested in such things, follows the traditional one, which means that the evil step-mother conjoles the father into taking the children deep into the jungle where they are to be abandoned. And keeping with the ancient theme, the witch is shoved into the oven where she burns up.

Talking Points:::
I really liked that the author placed this traditional story in another setting. Her artwork is colorful and in an collage form that is very appealing.

I thought the story itself will work best for children that already know the story as there were little leaps in the narrative.

The artwork is so good and effective that adults ought to consider whether it's appropriate for very young children. I would not have read it to my children when they were toddlers nor preschoolers. They enjoyed it very much now that they are older. (**3.5 Stars**)

Pam T~
mom and reviewer at BooksForKids-reviews

Once upon a time in Africa there lived a woodcutter and his wife who had fallen on some very tough times. His wife, the selfish stepmother of his two children, decided that the best idea would be to take them and take them"deep into the forest" and leave them there. They were going to starve if they kept those kids and if he didn't agree to that she was going to bother him forever and a day. Hansel and Gretel overheard them talking and were prepared to get through the ordeal by collecting pebbles to drop along the way so they could wend their way home.

The next night, when they had been abandoned in the forest it was so dark and scary to be out in the open under starry skies that Gretel began to cry. Hansel hugged and comforted her telling her not to worry. Of course the "pebbles Hansel had dropped glistened in the moonlight and the children followed them home." The stepmother was so mad she looked like she was going to pop any minute. The children were locked in the house and were unable to collect more pebbles. This time when they were taken into the forest they dropped bits of bread, only to have birds devour them. They came across a house "built entirely for bread with a roof made of cake and windows made of sugar." Very soon the children were captured by a wicked witch whose only plan was to fatten up poor Hansel and have a "tasty meal." Were they ever going to get out of this mess alive?

This "retold" story was very appealing, not so much for the story line, but rather the art work. The combination of bold painted strokes and collage melded together to create an endearing family group on the one hand and a wicked stepmother and an evil witch on the other. The dark forest scenes were alive with vegetation and animal life and the reader almost wants to reach into the book and comfort poor Gretel. If you are into fairy tales that have had new life breathed into them, this one is a wildly interesting one you just might want to consider! Now the witch in this one is something else!

Rachel Isadora's "Hansel and Gretel" is a retelling of the classic Grimm fairytale, moving the setting to Africa. The story is very similar to the Grimm fairytale, the main difference being the distinctly African flavor of the setting and characters. It is quite a refreshing spin on the traditional folktale and my preschooler and I loved the illustrations, well, all except one - the depiction of the witch. I felt the witch was overly demonized in her depiction and my preschooler visibly shrank away from the book when we came to the part which showed the witch. This might scare off younger readers, so I would be cautious in recommending this book to those below 4. Other than that, the collages are beautiful to look at and the colors used are bright and vivid. I liked that the author chose to retell this classic in an African setting if only because it provides a fresh perspective and also because I feel fairy tales hold universal appeal. Recommended for ages 5 and up [in my opinion].