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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
New Fairy Tale Treasury from Cooper Edens, September 10, 2004
This review is from: Princess Stories: A Classic Illustrated Edition (Hardcover)
In 1991, Cooper Edens published "The Three Princesses: The Ultimate Illustrated Edition," a book containing three princess fairy tales (Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty) with 172 illustrations from the Golden Age of illustration. The book has since gone out of print and has become popular among collectors with some editions selling for well over $100 in the used book market. Now Edens has produced a similar book, "Princess Stories," which may become just as sought after by collectors in the years to come. This time he includes eight tales, including Cinderella, The Frog Prince, The Little Mermaid, The Princess and the Pea, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Beauty and the Beast. Edens has included over 150 illustrations to accompany the tales by such masters as Kay Nielsen, Walter Crane, Edmund Dulac, Charles Robinson, W. Heath Robinson, Honor Appleton, Jesse Wilcox Smith, and Arthur Rackham. More obscure and anonymous illustrations by these illustrators' contemporaries are also included. Thus results a feast of fairy tale illustrations in color and black and white for all ages. The hardcover book is printed on fine paper and new illustrations appear with every turn of the page. Readers will enjoy comparing the different visions by the illustrators of the same tales. The texts are also rich and reflect earlier versions of the tales. My only regret is that there wasn't room for even more illustrations although plenty are provided here. Unfortunately, the cover of the book is deceptive due to its design. With the last two letters of "Princess" appearing over the glowing candle, the book appears to be "Prince Stories" at first glance of the cover. Never fear, the interior of the book is much better designed with no loss of illustration or textual integrity.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Heroines for all times., August 10, 2005
This review is from: Princess Stories: A Classic Illustrated Edition (Hardcover)
This book containes stories that helped me live through all the tough times in my childhood-in my teens,and even now.The good will succeed.The wicked will fail. The good are gentle and forgiving;the Charles Perrault Cinderella,forgiving her sisters,is one example. The real little mermaid,not the Disney clown.The loving,suffering girl who will do anything for the one she loves,and who gets her reward;an eternal life. Eight girls who have lived,strong and brave,some since the seventeenth century,some even longer.Every part of the story illustrated by many of the best artists who ever lived. Nothing dumbed down,because the stories exists outside of time or place. Won't you let your children(of any age,from toddler to teen)get to know them?It's a new century.We need true heroines!
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rich artwork and dark, powerful stories, September 15, 2007
This review is from: Princess Stories: A Classic Illustrated Edition (Hardcover)
The Walt Disney corporation has laid out such a powerful claim on the world of fairytale princesses -- and backed that claim with gigantic, relentless marketing and branding campaigns -- that it is a relief to go back and see the original stories, in versions that aren't dependent on "special edition" videos or endless plastic goo-gaws. Indeed, this beautifully designed edition collects not only eight of the most archetypal stories ("Cinderella," "Sleeping Beauty," "Snow White," et.al.) it also explores the various representations of these classic tales that were given by the masterful childrens' book artists of the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Like other books researched by editor Cooper Edens, this gathers dozens of vintage illustrations, each more lavish than the next, reviving a different sort of storytelling magic than the video template of Disney and their imitators. It's a rich visual and historical experience, the perfect thing to inspire wonder about and interest in the past. The downside, such as it is, is that these are also unvarnished, unsanitized versions of these dark, disturbing stories. The prospects of sexuality, violence and death that pervaded the early fairytales is left intact, as are the often explicit religious messages. For this reason, I would not recommend this edition for younger children: it's a little scary, especially things like the original version of Hans Christian Andersen's "Little Mermaid," and the original "Snow White." There is a marvelous version of "Beauty And The Beast," however, and a very long "Cinderella," both of which are quite nice. It's the pictures that you will keep coming back to, though. This book is a rich visual treat that can sit on the family bookshelf for years to come, delighting and enchanting readers young and old. (ReadThatAgain)
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