The Red Shoes [Hardcover]

Hans Christian Andersen (Adapter), Barbara Bazilian (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

When Karen becomes entranced by a pair of beautiful red dancing shoes in the shop window, they fill her every thought and dream. Over the course of several years, her desire turns to desperation until she can finally purchase the shoes herself.

Suddenly things take a terrifying turn for the worse, as Karen learns, in the words of the shopkeeper, to "...be careful what you wish for, because it may come true."

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Kindergarten-Grade 3. The only elements of Andersen's story that Bazilian retains here are the name of the heroine and the coveted red shoes. Karen saves her spending money to purchase the shoes, and the shoemaker warns her to be careful about what she wishes. She dances brilliantly in the shoes but is troubled that it is increasingly difficult to remove them. Finally, after the ball where she dances all night, she cannot remove them, and she cannot stop dancing. Exhausted and frightened, Karen approaches a cliff and wishes to become a bird. Her wish is granted, and when she returns to her grandmother, she repents her vanity and is restored. The character of the shoemaker is ambiguous: is he intended to be malevolent or is he an agent of punishment, a cautionary figure? Readers are given no reason why the girl's wish to become a bird would be granted but not her desire to stop dancing. The artwork is packed with significant details, such as a ribbon motif running through many of the illustrations and the background presence of the shoemaker, who bears a disturbing resemblance to Andersen. Bazilian's tale bears so little resemblance to the original that one wonders why the reteller bothered to use it at all.?Donna L. Scanlon, Lancaster County Library, PA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

highly recommended adaptation of a Hans Christian Anderson classic fairy tale will enchant a whole new generation of young readers. -- Children's Bookwatch, September 1997

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Hardcover: 6 pages
• Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishing (October 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1879085569
• ISBN-13: 978-1879085565
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,377,613 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Red Shoes, October 22, 2000

By 

V. Charbonneau (Quebec, Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Red Shoes (Hardcover)

This retelling of Hans Christian Anderson's classic fairytale is well done. It is the story of a girl who becomes obssessed with owning a pair of beautiful red dancing shoes with long silk ribbons. Her grandmother refuses to buy them, claiming they are not practical. Yet she thinks of nothing else and saves up all her money, until finally they are hers. However, the girl soon finds out the consequences of possessing the red shoes. The ending of the story has changed from the original---which was the girl amputated her feet to get the shoes off. The ending of this version is more suitable for younger readers. The illustrations in the book are quite lovely and detailed, especially the facial expressions of the young girl and the suspicious old shoemaker. I enjoyed it a lot.

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Illustrations!, January 31, 2002

By 

Michelle Paul "michellepaul" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Red Shoes (Hardcover)

Wonderful illustrations! A beautiful addition to any child's library of fairy tales.