Customer Reviews

The Little Mermaid and Other Tales

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I found this book to be not only entertaining as a story book, but also very helpful to my profession. As a children's theater director in the planning stages of a production of 'The Little Mermaid', I had been trying to find a copy of the story in its original form, and could only find rewritten and sugarcoated versions of this classic. This book had exactly what I was looking for. The stories in this book are true to how Hans Christian Andersen had written them, but like most fairy tales, they don't always have a happy ending. I suggest this book to older children or to adults who liked these stories as a child. This book may not be appropriate if you are looking for bedtime stories for very young children, but as a reference tool, it's superb. The type-face is large enough to be read easily and the watercolor-style illustrations are beautiful.

While the stories are wonderful as always, I bought this volume based on

the comment "that the illustrations had a lovely watercolor like effect". I guess I just don't see shades of gray as watercolor.

I do appreciate the masters of black and white illustration, but children really do not. This is the last book I buy that is not better identified as having black and white, color or both illustrations. What is inside the book should be made aware to the buyer. Otherwise the savings to be had and the fun of the online hunt become moot, when opening the volume in hand at a bookstore will answer all your questions. I LOVE those sellers who are open and honest enough to describe their books in detail down to the number of illustrations, including how many are in black and white or color. I will buy from them even if their price is higher. Showing a cover or illustrative example is also a nice selling point.

Over the years I have enjoyed many HCA fairy tales, particularly

those which are not too tragic and appear as beautifully-illustrated picture books. But I must admit to being disappointed by this Harper anthology which is not all inclusive). The tales vary in length from rather long to absurdly short. Despite the author's occasional subtle humor he intrudes too much of himself into many tales, as if readers were really interested in hearing about the actual storyteller. One wonders if he were trying to curry favor with royal patronage at times. Some tales are brutal or grisly; others seem legitimate pleas for social reform. His favorite themes for general moralizing depict the dangers of excessive: greed, violence, and vanity. Was HCS trying to instruct or entertain his young readers?