FolkloreAges 8–9
Hans Christian Andersen: fairy tales
Hans Christian Andersen · 1837
ProtestantEuropean
The Little Mermaid, The Snow Queen, The Ugly Duckling, The Nightingale, The Emperor's New Clothes. Where Grimm collected, Andersen invented — these are literary fairy tales by a single Danish hand, sadder and stranger than the German ones. Read Jean Hersholt's translations or the Tiina Nunnally edition.
A note to parents
Sadder than Grimm and often grimly final — the original Little Mermaid does not get the prince, The Little Match Girl freezes to death, The Red Shoes ends with the girl's feet cut off. Some children find these overwhelming; preview before reading aloud.
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