Product Description
For over one hundred years The Ugly Duckling has been a childhood favorite, and Jerry Pinkney's spectacular new adaptation brings it triumphantly to new generations of readers.With keen emotion and fresh vision, the acclaimed artist captures the essence of the tale's timeless appeal: The journey of the awkward little bird -- marching bravely through hecklers, hunters, and cruel seasons --- is an unforgettable survival story; this blooming into a graceful swan is a reminder of the patience often necessary to discover true happiness.Splendid watercolors set in the lush countryside bring drama to life.

2X2 Reading List (TLA)

2000 Notable Children's Books (ALA), 2000 Caldecott Honor Book

Customer Reviews (19)

A Lavishly Beautiful Adaptation of the Classic Story
Hans Christian Anderson's story tells of a swan hatched into a family of ducks, who lives his life trying to fit into a situation where he doesn't belong.When this "ugly duckling" finds himself in the company of swans and realizes that he is really one of them, he understands that all the qualities which caused him to be rejected were actually signs of his true character.This story lends a hope-filled perspective on social difficulties, suggesting that may be seeds of greatness even in the most awkward individuals.It brings a gentle moral lesson both to those who are ostracized and those who are tempted to judge others by their appearances.

Jerry Pinkney's adaptation brings the story into a visual splendor, with lushly detailed watercolor paintings full of drama and life.His text is smoothly written, although heavily abridged from the original version.It's a perfect adaptation for children who are not quite ready to transition from picture books to chapter books, because its visual representation of the story establishes the story line so vividly; reading the full text version at a later time will be easy if they can picture Pinkney's scenes in their minds.

Not an Ugly Tale
The ugly duckling is a classic telling of an all too familiar theme that we as parents tell our kids all the time: that looks on the outside matter little, and that it's what is on the inside that counts. This classic tale tells the message for us, in a fun and entertaining way that children will enjoy (my daughter did anyway).

If you don't the skinny on this old classic, it's as follows: a newborn baby duck makes his way into the world, but this is no ordinary duck, oh, no; this duck doesn't quite look like his siblings or any other duck for that matter. This duck is teased, bullied and made to feel worthless. But in the end, we find out that this duck is not a duck at all, but in fact is a swan and a beautiful one at that.

I believe that the realization of the swan that he is not ugly and actually is something beautiful is very touching as he seemed so sad before this realization. I don't think the author is trying to say that if you are labeled as ugly, that you will and should be teased; but the symbolism of ugly duck turning into a beautiful swan seems to convey a type of hidden self worth which comes into light when needed the most. I realize this might be over the heads of younger readers, but I hope you parents understand my meaning.

The color illustrations are excellent.

Darien Summers, author of The Mischievous Hare, a children's book.

Beautiful book, faithful re-telling
Beautiful book, full of details.The story is a faithful re-telling of Andersen's story, so the story is not dumbed-down like so many re-tellings of this story are, so it's a bit lengthy and scary.Not for the youngest readers.

Gorgeous
Hans Christian Anderson original fantastic prose is kept to its sparkling perfection in this book as Jerry Pinkney happily puts in his charming and almost dream-like illustrations. Fantastic edition.

such a deep meaning between its light, childish writings...
(This review is about the story and not about the specific content of the book)

Luis Mejia (son) - As a fan of more classic readings, I personaly got to appreciate Hans Christen Andersen as one of my favourite writters, not only because his beautiful, gorgeous tales are brought up for a sleepy kid who likes to hear a story from his dad, as he finally gets asleep with a smile, its because among all of his works, some may be totally written for putting on paper a story full of fantastic moments but without an implicit meaning, but in its underlying words, it can teach a lot about values, just like The Little Mermaid tales a great value and a deep, underlying meaning of true love, making hard decissions toward the theme, the beauty of love an its unreachable boundaries, but, among all of Andersen's writtigs, The Ugly Duckling is one of his two that makes me cry. Its heartful, touchy story about a little duck, who, like every alive creature in the world, even a real duck, just want to be accepted as a normal duck who wants to learn about the experience of life, even when he doesn't knows that, unfortunately, this doesn't go that way, his brothers and other mates would constantly pick on him, bothering him, making the poor duck cry, even his mother felt embarassed about having such an ugly duck, what's the meaning in this part of the story? When you are an adult, or a mature adolescent one gets it quickly, even its meaning about rejecting/bullying others because of any condition (as this is not focused on beauty, is focused on any aspect that it could be found) can be seen in modern society, and, as it later reflects on the ongoing story, it can have very sad effects. The duck, all alone even at his early life, goes onto a journey of searching his place or at least some love, and he fails a couple of times, here the meaning is another very deep one, life is about risks and chances, and nothing is sure, anyone can make mistakes in any moment of his life, even when they are sadder. And when, finally, he discovers a place where he wished he could live, he felt deeply attracted by this place and its animals, and, when these attractive animals come closer, the little ugly duckling was already been hurted, so he was even more scared, as these animals he was seeing where something really special, to the point of even thinking "It doesn't matter now, I would prefer to dye here, beside this beautiful creatures, even if they kill me, or I dye in the cold, instead of all alone outside" (it really says this) this part really touches my heart. But instead of finding strong rejection, he founds comprehension and acceptance, he is even regarded as one of those beautiful animals which he dreamed about!

For children, there's no way to search for a meaning here, as it may stay as a simple, short story, attractive because of talking animals and light emotions, and a very good one for putting to sleep a children, but for adults, this story is much more than that, the story coul've been made up to even 500 pages, although here the parts are clear, main rejection, something general instead of specific, a search for a true home, a couple of places with searched with failure, and his final transformation. So, the values that this story teaches are amazing and pretty recognizables, values like those of patience, love, comprehension, although the story's main point is clear: even in our hardest situations in life, at any age, at any time, we should always be hopeful and faithful, we'll have to start our journey for finding our place, as the duck did, we shall never give up, don't be the duck that dies in the cold or loses every hope, we'll make a lot of mistakes, go through many situations that gets us down in the road, but without giving up, as the duck who finds two places where he didn't fit as well (as well as it could've been a thousand places), and, even if the road seems eternal and unreachable, even if we've been through a lot of sad stories, even if we're all alone within any situation, we'll find our true home, the true love, our deeply desired place, we'll finally discover ourselves, and have a happy ending, living happy forever.

Plus, the gorgeous illustrations and sensitive way of telling the story in the book, makes it a really fantastic, pretty edition. ... Read more

Product Description
A collection of Andersen's most popular tales includes "The Ugly Duckling," "The Emperor's New Clothes," "Silly Hans," "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Princess and the Pea," "The Fir Tree," "It's True!" and "Thumbelina." ... Read more

Product Description
Here are all 159 tales written by Hans Christian Anderson, the master Danish storyteller, accompanied by illustrations from Arthur Rackham, Hans Richter, and other. These cherished tales include:

• "The Little Mermaid"

• "Thumbelina"

• "The Emperor's New Clothes"

• "The Snow Queen"

• "Ib and Little Christina"

• "The Princess and the Pea" ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Very nice book
This is a very good book.The cover may be a little boring but the quality is very nice especially considering the price.The pages are bordered with gold.The book looks like it's worth $50.Too bad my over priced college text books were not this nice or affordable.It's not often you find a hard cover book with gold leaves for $20!

This book contains a lot of short stories.Do not be shocked if many of the stories are somber.I selected three stories that I was not familiar with.All three stories were not your typical fairy tales.When I think of fairy tales I think of a light story with morals and happy endings for kids and adults.The three stories I read had moral lessons but they are geared towards adults.

People will be surprised that Hans Christian Andersen wanted to be known as a serious writer.He didn't target kids as his main audience.Sure, many of his stories are popular with kids but many less popular stories are definitely adult material.For example, I don't want to read any stories about war to my two year old niece.Many adult readers will be surprised by his stories.

In summary, get this book if you want to have a collection of stories from this famous author.You will not be sorry.

Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tales
I purchased this book because my daughter requested it for Christmas. She is an avid reader and was extremely thrilled to receive this book.She loves it!!!

Love the book
The book was in extremely good conditions when it was delivered & the gold tips with the leather binding was great as this looks like an older version of the book like hard back books used to be made that lasted a very long time.

clumsy translations / great stories
There are many better translations out there, so there is no excuse to produce something that reads badly.I was disappointed and bought another edition.Mine is being resold on Amazon.I hate these bogus "classics."

The Complete Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales, Deluxe Edition (Literary Classics)
Excellent edition, however I had hoped to receive one with colour plates rather than the black and white plates. This was my only disappointment.The book was luxuriously bound and beautifully put together. All the stories are there, and it is funny how ones memories can play tricks as I thought the description in the story The Tinder Box described one of the dogs as having 'eyes like saucers' when the book texted 'eyes like teacups' or 'eyes like towers'.I am in no position to argue, but the story still remains magical.

Worth having this in any serious book collection, but as the pages are quite fragile I would suggest avoiding letting children having free run of this in case it gets damaged, perhaps until they are at least about 8 with advanced reading capabilities.

... Read more

Product Description
On the 200th anniversary of his birth, a new biography of the much-loved children's author, Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen was a storyteller for children of all ages, but he was more than that. He was a critical journalist with great enthusiasm for science, an existential thinker, an observant travel book writer, a passionate novelist, a deft paper cut-out artist, a neurotic hypochondriac, and a man with intense but frustrated sexual desires. This startling and immensely readable, definitive new biography by Danish scholar Jens Andersen is essential to a full understanding of the man whose writing has influenced the lives of readers young and old for centuries. Jens Andersen sheds brilliant new light on Hans Christian Andersen's writings and on the writer whose own life had many aspects of the fairytale. Like some of the memorable characters he created, Andersen grew up in miserable and impoverished circumstances. He later propagated myths about his life and family, but this new biography uncovers much about this man that has never been revealed before. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Well Crafted 600 Page Biography Covering His Life
This is a well written and generally what one would call an excellent 600 page biography of perhaps Denmark's most famous writer who lived from 1805 to 1875. The book has lots of photographs and many interesting pieces of information. It goes into his life at a fine level of detail, and attempts to combine his life story with his travels and his writings, explaining the private and public personalities. I found the book to be expensive at book stores, very expensive, almost too expensive to buy, but it is less expensive as an on line purchase. It is written in a folksy style, a bit different from many biographies, and each chapter has a short one page introduction in italics to set the mood for that chapter. It covers most of his life in great detail more or less in chronological order starting with the young teen age Andersen about 14 - from poor parents - and his break at the Royal Theatre around 1820. There are some excellent photographs of the aging Andersen.

The book tells a fairly detailed story of his breaks and opportunities that allowed him to finish school and obtain some university level education at the Copenhagen University. The book includes many references to his writings including his first writings when he was just seventeen. Like many other famous writers such as Dickens, he came from a home where the father had failed to provide economic support and he had to find work in his youth to survive - and then his father died when he was just 11 years old. Like Dickens and others, that changed his outlook on the world, and Andersen wrote hundreds of stories and short pieces often with the aim of entertaining children to make them happier. Despite the economic hardships, he did gain some inspiration from his father. His mother was interested in folklore and that was passed onto Andersen and reflected in some of his writings. There are chapters on his travels and some on interactions with other European writers of his era in Germany, France and England, and in fact he did meet Dickens. An interesting chapter describes how the famous Andersen lives in his own country of Denmark often living as a free guest as a celebrity getting free meals and lodging - in a way similar to some of our modern athletes or movie stars who go to restaurants or resorts and expect to get free meals in exchange for being photographed with the owner, or giving them signed baseballs, etc.

Overall this is a good read and one can get a fairly good understanding of Andersen, right up to his declining years. He made a name for himself as a writer of fairy tales for children - about farm animals and similar that carry on in conversations as if they are people. He expanded this to include his travels as an element of his writings, Italy being one of the most famous countries, but not the only country. This topic is well covered in the book including trips from Denmark to Portugal and elsewhere. The book is very well organized - much more so than many biographies - and it has a good introduction and index, but not much in the way of notes and follow up documentation. Also, as the authors point out, some of the references are written in Danish.

In any case, this is a substantial but easy to read biography, and one is impressed with the effort and the level of detail.

5 stars.

The Radically Bizarre Source for the Best Fairy Tales
HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN as written by Jens Andersen and beautifully translated form the Danish by Tiina Nunnally is that sort of biography we all long to read: the facts are all well-researched, the data is all in place, but the book reads like a novel.

Andersen's background is a fairytale unto itself and if ever there was a man whose beginnings belied his later success and durability as a writer, this man is it.Gratefully his oeuvre was appreciated in his lifetime and his wondrous tales have pleasured young and old alike for well over a hundred years.In his native Denmark he is considered a near 'saint' and his books have been translated into every language and are in the homes of children of all ages throughout the world.

This biography is, thankfully, not afraid to discuss those darker aspects of Andersen's life, but the way in which the author deals with this difficult information is the model of excellent reportage.The narrative style of Andersen on Andersen is by far the most positive aspect of this fine book.

Despite the weight (over 600 pages) of this tome, it is not daunting in the least.It reads quickly and entertainingly and is as fine as any biography of the world's favorite children's writer on the shelves.Highly recommended.Grady Harp, June 05 ... Read more

Product Description
This Illustrated collection, beautifully translated by Pat Shaw Iversen, includes forty-seven of Hans Christian Andersen's immortal tales. ... Read more

Product Description

Product Description
Sixteen tales including "Little Claus and Big Claus," "Father's Always Right," and "The Goblin and the Grocer." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Wondeful
This is a beautifully produced book. Wonderful illustrations which are works of art in their own right and a translation of Andersen which is faithful to the original. ... Read more

Product Description
Lilly Owens, ed. Illustrated edition of 159 cherished tales that have enchanted readers for generations. Includes The Ugly Duckling, The Emperor's New Clothes, Snow Queen, all uncut with beautiful illustrations by Arthur Rackham, Hans Richter, et al. 60 B&W illustrations. 816 pages. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (22)

THE COMPLETE HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN FAIRY TALES
These are the original fairy tales!I could not put the book down!If you like fairy tales, you will love this book.These are not at all like the ones you heard as a child.

Censored edition misses the point
The purpose of the classic fairy tale is to give one insight into the inner workings of the human psyche. That is why these stories were passed down orally for generations and painstakingly preserved by the Brothers Grimm.

Hans Christian Andersen has watered the stories down and thereby lost the power that they were meant to impart.

Try Pantheon's version of Grimm's Fairy Tales instead.

HansChristian Anderson book
I was very satisfied with the book it was in unbeivably good shape and I am enjoying it very much

Fairy Tales
I bought this book and must admit to not paying attention to the typeset or quality of the paper.It didn't matter to me because I was still being transported away with the memories of the wonderful fairy tales from my childhood.

The book still serves its purpose, the tales are as wonderful and magical as I remember them, and I look forward to reading them out loud to my grandchildren.Better still, the format will still see them enjoying it in their adulthood as it does me.

It is good to see these stories have been kept alive and well preserved.

For the price, its been well worth it for me.

HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSON
MY GRANDKIDS WILL ENJOY THIS AS MUCH AS I DID AS A CHILD WHEN MYMOM READ TO ME. ITHAS ALL HIS WRITINGS. ... Read more

Product Description
This delightful selection of stories by one of the classic masters of the genre includes some well-known and lesser known tales, presented in lively Naxos AudioBooks style with music and sound effects. This recording is also unique in that the stories are read by the finalists in the Naxos AudioBooks/ The Times Voice of the Year competition which offered a recording opportunity to talented readers who had never studied or worked professionally. The competition produced some outstanding natural talents as this recording shows! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Super Value
The production is great; and, I just found the same audiobook (Thumbelina and Other Fairy Tales) packaged with an additional three audiobooks from Naxos AudioBooks' Junior Classics series: Happy Endings [AUDIOBOOK] [SPECIAL LIMITED EDITION] (Audio CD)by Hans Christian Andersen (Author), The Brothers Grimm (Author).

All four audiobooks @ $15.59- That's a value!

Excellent choice for auditory learners
Very pleasant speaking voices, the classical music is well done and offsets the stories nicely without overwhelming the narrative. The stories have morals well worth listening to in the car or at bedtime. The prose is well-written and has an excellent selection of vocabulary words presented in a very straight-forward and intelligent format. Thumbelina was one of the stories with which I was previously familiar and the others will soon become favorites, as with most of Hans Christian Anderson. Wonderful way to expose children to the written word in an interesting format. The stories do not seem to be altered from the original prose, although I would have to check that to be sure. Excellent choice for auditory learners. ... Read more

Product Description
Once there was a little mermaid who fell in love with a human boy . . .The story may be familiar, but Lisbeth Zwerger's art makes this fairytale seem brand-new. This Jubilee edition, celebrating 200 years of Hans Christian Andersen, is superbly illustrated in Zwerger's signature style. Known for her popular and award-winning editions of classics such as The Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland, Zwerger is herself the recipient of the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for lasting contributions to children's literature. The Little Mermaid is sure to win her new fans, and to delight her old ones.

The text is an all-new translation by Anthea Bell, and includes many lovely and poignant details that may be new to even those who think they know the little mermaid's story well. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (7)

The Little Mermaid
The translation from the original Danish is very nice.And that's what I bought the book for. The artwork is not the best children's book artwork I've seen - but it's okay.

Very beautiful and sad at the same time...
I really loved this version of The Little Mermaid. It was very beautiful and sad at the same time. I loved the part where it was talking about each of the mermaid's 15th Birthday that they would go up to the serface and see what it was like. The book was sad in a way. It was when the little mermaid was talking to her grandmother and found out that they don't have a soul after they die. The part about the sea witch was kind of scary... but not. Though I didn't like how she had to cut the mermaid's tounge off. The mermaid does give up everything and her life... because the one whom she loved fell in love with another girl. You have to read this book for yourself. I really loved this book! I hope you will too!

Disappointment
I love this fairy tale, and I love this illustrator, but I do not love this book.The story itself is unnecessarily wordy and boring.The illustrations, while lovely, are boring, too.That's the short and sweet of it.Disappointment.

an original touch
One shouldn't expect the cliche' in this book's artistic approach. It is original and understandable, making it possible for children and adults alike to have an image of Hans Christian Andersen's wording. Although quite few images are present, they are infact very nice and pleasing to look at.

Even Mermaids Die of a Broken Heart
This is the true story of The Little Mermaid. Unlike the Disney version where she gets the prince, the mermaid dies of a broken heart when the Prince whose life she saved marries another. The tragedy of the ending is what made the original version so touching. A beautiful mermaid gives up her voice, her family, her life in the sea in order to be with the one she loves. The promise is the love and the soul of sacrifice. It was a love dependant on another, being the Prince, and the risks she took were considerable. When the Prince falls for the woman he thought rescued him at sea it is the end of the Little Mermaid's quest for eternity. But since she doesn't kill him and his new bride she gets what she wanted all along ... a soul ... and no longer needs the Prince to live as a spiritual being in eternity. Not only is the little mermaid free from the curse of the Sea Witch but she earns her soul on her own volition. The Prince was merely a conduit to her wish. It is more poignant this way since the little mermaid no longer needs to earn love from anyone except herself.

[...]

"Among the daughters of the air," answered one of them. "A mermaid has not an immortal soul, nor can she obtain one unless she wins the love of a human being. On the power of another hangs her eternal destiny. But the daughters of the air, although they do not possess an immortal soul, can, by their good deeds, procure one for themselves. We fly to warm countries, and cool the sultry air that destroys mankind with the pestilence. We carry the perfume of the flowers to spread health and restoration. After we have striven for three hundred years to all the good in our power, we receive an immortal soul and take part in the happiness of mankind. You, poor little mermaid, have tried with your whole heart to do as we are doing; you have suffered and endured and raised yourself to the spirit-world by your good deeds; and now, by striving for three hundred years in the same way, you may obtain an immortal soul."

The little mermaid lifted her glorified eyes towards the sun, and felt them, for the first time, filling with tears. On the ship, in which she had left the prince, there were life and noise; she saw him and his beautiful bride searching for her; sorrowfully they gazed at the pearly foam, as if they knew she had thrown herself into the waves. Unseen she kissed the forehead of her bride, and fanned the prince, and then mounted with the other children of the air to a rosy cloud that floated through the aether.

"After three hundred years, thus shall we float into the kingdom of heaven," said she. "And we may even get there sooner," whispered one of her companions. "Unseen we can enter the houses of men, where there are children, and for every day on which we find a good child, who is the joy of his parents and deserves their love, our time of probation is shortened. The child does not know, when we fly through the room, that we smile with joy at his good conduct, for we can count one year less of our three hundred years. But when we see a naughty or a wicked child, we shed tears of sorrow, and for every tear a day is added to our time of trial!"



... Read more

Product Description
Written for young children with all the warmth, wit, and character of the 19th-century originals, this collection, previously published as Elf Hill, offers a rich mix of fairy and toy tales from the master of the form. Naomi Lewis’s translations capture the poetry of Andersen’s simple style, while Emily Chichester Clark’s colorful art finds the vibrancy and whimsy in these stories. From elaborate tableaux to piquant vignettes, the illustrations resonate for both fans and new readers with their images of elves and trolls cavorting in the woods and toys comically assuming human airs in the playroom. ... Read more

Product Description
Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free.This is an OCR edition with typos.Excerpt from book:The Quickest Runners.rriHERE was a large reward offered—indeed, there were -I- two rewards offered, a larger and a lesser one—for the greatest speed, not in one race alone, but to such as had got on fastest throughout the year." I got the highest prize," said the hare. " One had a right to expect justice when one's own family and best friends were in the council; but that the snail should have got the second prize I consider as almost an insult to me."" No," observed the wooden fence, which had been a witness to the distribution of the prizes; " you must take diligence and good will into consideration. That remark was made by several very estimable persons, and that was also my opinion. To be sure the snail took half a year to cross the threshold; tut he broke his thigh-bone in the tremendous exertion which hat was for him. He devoted himself entirely to this race;d, moreover, he ran with his house on his back. All these weighed in his favour, and so he obtained the second prize."" I think my claims might also have been taken into considcration," said the swallow. " More speedy than I, in flight and motion, I believe no one has shown himself. And where have I not been ? Far, far away!"" And that is just your misfortune," said the wooden fence. " You gad about too much. You are always on the wing, ready to start out of the country when it begins to freeze. You have no love for your fatherland. You cannot claim any consideration in it."" But if I were to sleep all the winter through on the moor," inquired the swallow—" sleep my whole time away— should I be thus entitled to be taken into consideration ? "" Obtain an affidavit from the old woman of the moor that you did sleep half the year in your fatherland, then your claims will be taken into consider... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Just what I was looking for !!
Having recently visited Odense, Denmark, with a tour guide who is a true Andersen expert, I was eager to take her suggestion that I find a more authentic translation of Andersen's work than is generally available.This book provides just what she recommended.Its short biogrqphical sketch of the man presents the REAL H.C. Andersen accurately, according to what I learned about him in Denmark, & the stories themselves are not "cleaned up" but are direct translations.I especially appreciate insights provided in the Notes at the end of each tale.They give the reader an even deeper look into the complex, fascinating man.This is not your Danny Kaye's H.C. Andersen !!

Too much information for my kids
What a shame!The book IS beautiful.I had hoped to give it as a gift to my 5 year old, but the biographical notes are much too sexually explicit.

Richly rewarding for all
The presentation of this book is superb; it is beautifully designed and produced, with charming illustrations that are especially apt, as they were executed by Andersen's contemporaries.

The admirable introduction places Andersen in the context of his time, and for American readers, links him to this country in a fresh way. A perfect length, the introduction provides the kind of information that makes one eager to get to the stories, yet it is not so detailed that, as too often happens with the more long-winded variety, it is skipped. Don't skip it, for it serves as an important guide to the stories, noting Andersen's adult concerns and anxieties imbedded beneath the surface of the tales, which remain wonderful out-loud reading for small fry.

The stories themselves are a revelation--dispelling the prejudices engendered by Danny Kaye and Disney. Stories taken for granted are new and impeccably rendered in this translation. (Even the notes are great--and should be read before the stories, filled as they are with fascinating information. Also, they're conveniently placed at the end of each story, yet the pages are not sullied by superscript numbers.)
This is a perfect gift, but be sure to keep one for yourself. ... Read more

Product Description
A classic translation of one of the world's greatest fairy tales — a magical story of a young girl's quest to save the boy she loves.

When Kay is lured from his home by the beautiful, cruel Snow Queen, his friend Gerda sets out on an epic journey to rescue him. As she searches, she encounters a series of strangers to whom she relays her plight. Charmed by her story and her innocence, each of them helps Gerda, so that at last she is able to find the Snow Queen's icy palace. But at the end of her epic journey, will Gerda manage to set Kay free? Soft, ethereal artwork and a faithful translation set the mood for a keepsake edition of Andersen's much-loved winter's tale. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A mystical masterpiece and literary treat
Ever since I read Hans Christian Anderson's superlative fairy tale,I fell in love with it.And without anybody telling me,I immediately recognised from where C.S. Lewis got the idea of the cruel white witch in his Chronicles of Narnia.Andreson's tale is magical,mystical,mythopoetic and essentially spiritual.I have come to believe that fairytales are the most adult literature that anyone can read,for they are true to sublime reality.I felt lost in the world of the snow queen and could feel every vibration from the pages seeping into me.Also the graphic illustrations which accompany this edition of Andreson's tale enhances the narrative tenfold.Children and adults will enjoy every sentence and every picture in this wonderful book.

Great Ilustrated Edition
I am a big fan of Candlewick Press since they have the most beautiful illustrated children books. This is the main reason why I decided to purchase this illustrated edition of the Snow Queen and I am so very glad I did so. The illustrations in this book amazing and, together with the quality of the book itself (which is always the case withCandlewick Press) and the wonderful story, they make this book a great buy. The print is nice and big and while it is probably not for a very young reader, I would say that an early independent reader can handle this book, especially since the rich illustrations help keep the reader's attention on the book and not get discouraged. I highly recommend this book also for young children: My six year old loves the story and the pics and will happily sit through the whole book. ... Read more