Grimm Tales for Young and Old
By Philip Pullman
Blurb
In this beautiful book of classic fairy tales, award-winning author Philip Pullman has chosen his fifty favourite stories from the Brothers Grimm and presents them in a'clear as water' retelling, in his unique and brilliant voice.
From the quests and romance of classics such as 'Rapunzel', 'Snow White' and 'Cinderella' to the danger and wit of such lesser-known tales as 'The Three Snake Leaves', 'Hans-my-Hedgehog' and 'Godfather Death', Pullman brings the heart of each timeless tale to the fore, following with a brief but fascinating commentary on the story's background and history. In his introduction, he discusses how these stories have lasted so long, and become part of our collective storytelling imagination.
These new versions show the adventures at their most lucid and engaging yet. Pullman's Grimm Tales of wicked wives, brave children and villainous kings will have you reading, reading aloud and rereading them for many years to come.
Our Review
Grimm Tales for Young and Old Is a wonderful retelling of the Grimm brother’s fairy tales. Philip Pullman has rewritten them in a way that makes them accessible for all.
I enjoyed reading all of the different sections of the book. I liked the way Philip Pullman began by discussing the different elements fairy tales have in common.
There were many stories within the book I hadn’t heard of and many more that I didn’t know were from the Grimm fairy stories.
Some of the stories from the collection were ones I knew from the Jim Henson series The Storyteller. In particular, I was surprised to learn that the story I knew as Sapsorrow was actually ‘Thousandfurs’.
Some new ones I hadn’t heard of but liked were ‘Faithful Johannes ‘and ‘The Frog King’.
I didn’t realise ‘Rapunzel’, ‘Snow White’ or ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ were part of the collection.
My favourite bit of each tale was Philip Pullman’s notes at the end of each story.
I really enjoyed reading this collection.
Our Final Rating...
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