Format:Kindle Book Languages:English (Unknown), English (Published) Media:Kindle Edition Edition:1st Reading Level:Young Adult Pages:437 Number Of Items:1
This really is the best!March 30, 2005 Bear in the Canyon(Albuquerque, New Mexico USA) 47 out of 48 found this review helpful
I've read several versions of many of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales; since I also read Danish, I can confirm that this is definitely the closest to his style of any translation I've ever seen. Nothing is added, nothing is omitted, and all his unique strangeness shines through in English at last.
Andersen was the first Danish author to break out of the mold of both neoclassicism and romanticism which preceded him, and his genius lay in writing as if he were telling the stories out loud to a group of children -- in the earlier, simpler tales -- and in capturing all the sorrow and joy of life in his later tales for adults. You may think you know these stories (no, there are no singing crabs in "The Little Mermaid," one of the more painful stories you will ever read), but you're in for a big surprise. Finally a translator who dares NOT to rewrite, explain, and simplify Hans Christian Andersen! Truly a magnificent edition in celebration of the author's bicentennial on April 2, 2005. (Read the biography by Jens Andersen too, it's a real eye-opener.)
Nothing is sweeter than the real storyApril 26, 2000 mary wills 29 out of 32 found this review helpful
I believe that the path to a well-rounded child is the truth. Too often we sensationalize and sugar-coat the truth when it comes to our kids. This book is a good example of the way things are. My favorite tale from this book would have to be "The Little Mermaid", and it will be the first tale I read my children when they are born. Mr. Anderson was a firm believer in drama mixed with the hard knocks of real life.Here he has just transformed them into a fantastical story that every child needs to be told. The elements of the story are very powerful, from the loss of innocence to the loss of love,and sometimes we need a good dose of something that isn't wholesome. I recommend this book to everyone, children and adults alike.
The stories sparkle!April 27, 2005 Vonda Covington(Houston, Texas) 19 out of 20 found this review helpful
We just got this book for my 8 year old daughter and I've been reading the stories to her. This book shows what a truly great story teller Hans Christian Anderson was! His stories sparkle! When I first got the book I was disappointed because the pictures are not at all spectacular. Upon reading the stories, the pictures don't matter at all. Anderson paints the pictures in your mind and you are just transported into his stories. The words are the pictures. My daughter and I are both enjoying this wonderful literature! I highly recommend the book to anyone wanting to introduce their child to truly wonderful classics.
Believe the hype!September 20, 2006 Bear in the Canyon(Albuquerque, New Mexico USA) 8 out of 8 found this review helpful
This is the first translation of Andersen's tales to capture his true voice -- try it and compare to any other translation and you'll see. I hope Penguin has Tiina Nunnally do all the rest of his stories soon!
Excellent reading of this great translationSeptember 20, 2006 Bear in the Canyon(Albuquerque, New Mexico USA) 1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Fantastic to hear these stories read (with a British accent) by these two delightful narrators -- it makes you realize what it must have been like to listen to Andersen tell them to children and adults in 19th-century Denmark in the drawing rooms of his wealthy patrons. Too bad we can't see him doing his simultaneous paper cuttings to illustrate the stories!
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