Tag Archives: fairy tales

7 Princess Stories Not To Miss

This was going to be an official “Top Ten” list but without going too deeply into the abundant fairy tale realm (Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty etc…) I found myself stretching to fill out the last three titles.  Furthermore, some of these titles are simply worth mentioning for reasons other than the fact that they are the “best in their class.” So I’m calling it simply “stories not to miss”. You can read about some more of the fairy tale princesses however, in my Top Ten Disney Alternatives post.

In the meantime though, our testosterone heavy home is still drinking at the oasis of Newborn-Baby-Girl and all the delights that brings.  There are a gazillion crummy princess books out there. (Generally a good indicator of crumminess is if there is a trademark symbol somewhere on the cover.)  There are plenty of okay, non-commercialized princess stories too—some traditional and some a bit more contemporary/unconventional.  But in the search for perfectly satisfying, girly books, here are some not to miss!

 The Paper Princess by Elisa Kleven.  There is no better, dreamy, whimsical artist for little girls than Elisa Kleven.  I have a post coming up soon on some of her newer titles… but this is one of her classics.  It’s a very sweet story of a girl’s creation coming to life, getting lost and found again.  Be sure to check out The Paper Princess Finds Her Way and The Paper Princess Flies Again: With Her Dog! also.

 Many Moons by James Thurber.  The classic story of a sick little girl who simply wants the moon in the sky and outwits all the experts to figure out how to get it. Many reviewers comment on the weird, watery illustrations… and I agree that they are perfect for this tale.

 The Princess in the Forest by Sibylle Von Olfers.  My very favorite princess book for the five and under crowd. This one doesn’t take us through extravagant legends or rich plots.  It is very simply a day in the life of a princess. Gorgeous, botanically rich drawings… very simple text… yet high on the whimsy factor.  A must have.

 Princess Aasta by Stina Langlo Ordal.  This book is part of the reason I can’t make this an official Top Ten post. See, this isn’t one of the best princess stories ever written.  Not at all.  But there is something satisfyingly quirky and strange about this tale.  A girl advertises for a bear to be her friend.  The chosen bear and she go on adventures to the North Pole.  It’s quite strange and the art is different.  But I find these novelties rather refreshing in a genre where the traditions and proper roles are usually quite predictable.

 Princess and Fairy by Anna Pignataro.  Another book here that will never be a hall-of-fame candidate.  But this book probably has the highest satisfaction factor for little girls out of all of them which is why I included it on this list.  It is bright, colorful, bubbly and it rhymes.  Most of all… there is a page with sparkles!  My daughter adores poring over this book finding items on the very detailed pages.  It is absolutely the girliest of girly books.

 The Apple-Pip Princess by Jane Ray.  I am happy to have a Jane Ray title in this list; she is an extraordinary artist.  And here is a lovely tale of a sweet princess who restores the beauty and grandeur of her kingdom.

 The Twelve Dancing Princesses by Marianna Mayer and K.Y. Craft.  This Grimm fairy tale has always been my very favorite… always.  And this gorgeously illustrated version is  does it justice. The pictures and tale are lavishly done. There is another beautiful one by Ruth Sanderson with its own flavor and style all its own.  You can’t go wrong with either one.

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And What About Halloween?

I’ll be honest, I’m not particularly thrilled with most Halloween books out there. They generally fall to two extremes: the much too-scary ghoulish books or the cutesy little stories that are explicitly twaddle.  Maybe it’s because there’s nothing really in the spiritual realm to bank this holiday on… with the exception of All Saint’s Day on November 1st—for which there are of course many good saint books.  But Halloween as it’s popularly known today? Pretty barren for the literature world. There are of course, a couple gems, generally related to pumpkins in general: Pumpkin Moonshine by Tasha Tudor is probably my only “must have” for this specific holiday. But Too Many Pumpkins is another fun one worth picking up.  And if you are able to find a good copy of Mousekin’s Golden House for under $20 you’d be lucky, but chances are slim. There are probably others, but I’ve stopped searching for great Halloween specific books. I turn to other sources to get into the spirit of things.

Ed Emberley is single-handedly responsible for encouraging my children to become little artists.  Whenever I used to try and get them to draw a scene from a story or just be creative, they would whine that “they didn’t know how.”  So I first bought Ed Emberley’s: Make a World to see if they would be motivated to try. Would they ever!  Suddenly, the whole world was opened up to them! They just needed to realize how easy it was to break down basic figures into manageable parts to draw, and Emberley was the first to show them how. Lately the boys have been drawing from two of his very Halloween oriented titles: Ed Emberley’s Drawing Book of Weirdos and Ed Emberley’s Big Orange Drawing Book (unfortunately out of print right now) . Both books are excellent for inspiring fun, not-too-scary-but-just-scary-enough drawings. We currently have expanded our How-To-Draw ______ books but still have a good half dozen of Emberley’s titles.

Another alternative to traditional Halloween stories are to explore picture books that really embody mystery and suspense… not necessarily fear. Chris Van Allsburg comes to mind with books like The Stranger or the fun and macabre (a great combo) alphabet book The Z Was Zapped.

Finally, this a great time to avoid the commercial Halloween fare altogether and bust out the old, creepy fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, or the modern but delicious Heckedy Peg. Search through many picture books to find one that gives a fair rendition of classic fairy tales or just save yourself the pain and invest in a good, quality anthology of originals.  Enter Andrew Lang’s Colored Fairy Book Collection if you want to do the piecemeal approach like I do.  Otherwise there are complete anthologies like Grimm’s Fairy Tales and Hans Christian Andersen: The Complete Fairy Tales and Stories.

Please note that not all fairy tales were written for children and some can be quite gruesome and morbid.  Use your best discretion in previewing these tales… but know that this is what they looked like before Disney came to popularize and trivialize them.


“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.”-Albert Einstein 
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Top Ten Best Disney Alternatives

Well everybody has an opinion on Disney, I may as well chime in with my two cents. In a nutshell: I love classic Disney movies. I also appreciate the occasional recent movie from the company as well.  What I don’t love is the current huge, bloated, over-commericalized Disney industry. I have other complaints from an artistic and ethical standpoint also, but I’ve not the energy to lay all that out there.  Generally speaking, I am disheartened by the commercialization of children. I want my daughter to love princesses sure. But do they have to always come with a trademark symbol after their name?!

So, here we have it then. My top ten alternatives to the Disney Empire. Keep in mind that many of the original fairy tales were actually written for adults, so the themes can get very dark, graphic or mature.  The books I have here are much more faithful to the original fairy tale (or myth or history) than the movies Walt and his contemporaries have made and may have some of those darker elements. Even if you are a Disney lover, reading these books would be an interesting lesson in “compare and contrast” for children of multiple ages.

1. Snow White illustrated by Charles Santore. Rich, traditional illustrations make this a great choice, and my boys especially love what they call “the big head dwarves.” But I do confess to having a soft spot also for the version by Paul Heins because Trina Schart Hyman adds the detail of a Marian image on one wall… plus the princess seems to age a little more congruently in her story.

2. Cinderella by K.Y. Craft definitely takes the cake here. Craft’s vibrant and ornate style is especially suited to this fairy tale. Barbara McClintock’s version of the story gets an honorable mention for a fun story and a young George Washington looking prince!




3. Aladdin And The Enchanted Lamp will substitute nicely for the letdown of Disney’s version; if you aren’t familiar with the story, you will be surprised at the liberties taken and unnecessary changes the movie made. Aladdin and the Magic Lamp by James Kunstler also looks promising (not having read it myself) as well as this version adapted by Eric Kimmel (of whom I am generally a great fan).

4. Hercules by Robert Burleigh is my favorite picture book alternative to the Disney movie.  Though this story only details the final of the twelve labors, it’s just the right size for younger children. While James Riordan’s book The Twelve Labors of Hercules is extremely well done and faithful to original story, it is fairly long and pretty graphic. There is the question of whether or not some of those images need picture representation at all. However, if we want to leave the book category altogether, I don’t think you’ll find a better retelling of the Hercules tale than that done by Jim Weiss.

5. Rapunzel by Alix Berenzy is my favorite adaptation of the Brothers Grimm tale. This one is far more popular but I think the author got a little sloppy with how Rapunzel got pregnant. In the original tale, and in Berenzy’s work, the symbol of her laying her hand in the prince’s seems to be what suffices for marriage vows. Then the story tastefully goes on with the prince finding Rapunzel at long last with their twins. At least with this there is no question of Rapunzel’s virtue being held intact.  The version of Rapunzel done by Barbara Rogasky (illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman) is also a winner and deals with the marriage situation artfully through omission. Rogasky actually states when the twins come in that Rapunzel and the prince were married by then and it’s done in a way that children won’t be asking “Wait, when did that happen?!”

6. Beauty and the Beast by Max Eilenberg is my favorite. The illustrations by Angela Barrett are just right: full, captivating, moody, and evocative. This particular version isn’t 100% accurate to the tale, but it is still full and rich and  the very minor embellishments just add to the beauty in my opinion. There are two other good options out there as well: the one by Jan Brett is clean, fairly simple and of course features the always lovely Brett artwork. And then the book by Marianna Mayer is pretty neat too. My only aversion to this one is that the illustrations of the beast (done by Mercer Mayer) are truly frightening. His eyes pop out in a very sort of disturbing way… but maybe it’s just me.

7. Pocahontas by the D’Aulaires is the only really solid alternative to the mediocre Disney movie. The movie itself was fairly informative but it of course avoided some of the uglier sides of the story (e.g. how the English treated her tribe). Reportedly, Disney turned down the offer of Native Americans who wanted to help the company produce a more accurate movie, but that’s just hearsay. But at least we have one great biography by the excellent Ingri and Edgar D’Aulaire. Their fun and appealing art is always a treat for children. I have seen a couple other books on Pocahontas but none stick out in my mind as pushing past mediocrity.  I think it’s time for someone to produce a beautiful and lavish book on this fascinating princess!

8. The Little Mermaid is the reason I wanted to write this post. Like any other little girl, I loved the Disney version of Little Mermaid. When I grew up and finally read the original tale, I was shocked at how dumbed down the cartoon version was… and how the ultimate ending of sacrifice and references to the eternal life were entirely omitted. But hey, Disney is in it for happy endings and I get that. The original tale is kind of an ambivalent ending: mermaid doesn’t get her prince, but she will get the chance to earn her afterlife. The versions available are tricky… I wanted to find something that still guarded the modesty of the mermaids without it being obvious or kitschy (e.g. clam shell bras). That unfortunately ruled out some beautiful versions of the story, most notably that done by Charles Santore (there is a new version available for pre-order on this one). I also was looking for something that preserved as much of the original language of the story as possible since it is just so extraordinary. This combination, tasteful illustrations and excellent text, was hard to come by. Robert Sabuda has a pop-up book (and I’m certain that ‘hardcover’ price will change in time) coming out later this year that could be excellent. Initial pictures of the pop-outs are incredible but I don’t know how the text will be yet. So I eventually settled on the the version the adaptation by Anthea Bell and illustrated by Chihiro Iwasaki. The story is simplified somewhat so the text isn’t as wonderful as Santore’s, and I was a little disappointed that the sea witch didn’t seem very evil but I really appreciate the watery, ethereal illustrations by Iwasaki. Even if they aren’t traditionally rich and bold, the simple sketch and watercolor technique is very fitting for this particular tale.

9. FA Mulan: The Story of a Woman Warrior by Robert San Souci is a very well done story about the Chinese folk hero, Mulan. This book is the actual one Disney used for the basis of their movies. And I have to admit, the movie version of this tale isn’t too far out there or ridiculous at all! For a later-released Disney flick, it was surprisingly well done all said and done.  Anyway, as usual though, the book is better!  And the illustrations here by Jean & Mou-Sien Tseng are, like Iwasaki’s Little Mermaid, the perfect fit for this story. They are bright, ornate and faithful. China’s Bravest Girl is another title you can look up in your library if this one is missing…

10. The Sleeping Beauty by Trina Schart Hyman is a narrow winner for this story. I also really love this version illustrated by K.Y. Craft.  But in the luxurious pictures in Craft’s book, the good fairy’s good body is fairly suggestively shown once (hey I’ve got four boys who don’t need that titillation!) and the witch in the tale is incredibly scary looking. In Hyman’s book, she gets major points for having the most handsome prince of all the fairy tale books I’ve ever seen. I admit this is just personal preference, but I really have no use for effeminate looking men in tights who’ve never needed a razor.  Craft’s Prince Charming comes with facial hair and looks manly and rugged and like someone who could definitely defend a princess from a dragon!

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Mythology and More

Here is a bright post from a bright young lady who I am happy to know personally. Seems I can’t get enough of the fairy tale topic lately. In her post, she references Psyche and Pandora; incidentally, I’m currently on a manhunt for excellent illustrated myths. I have read several and I currently have several more ordered at the local library to preview before giving glowing recommendations. But in the meantime, I did create an Amazon listmania list on this very topic. Most of the books on that list, I’ve read and loved… a few still need to be seen in person yet. But nothing at the outset leads me to believe there would be anything objectionable in them. So I created the list as a running reminder for myself to check them out and to guide others in finding excellent mythological picture books.

I expect to get more into the topic of mythology on here at a later time.


“For Mythology is the handmaid of literature; and literature is one of the best allies of virtue and promoters of happiness.” 
                                                     -Thomas Bullfinch
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brief pick and pass

I just wanted to briefly mention the best and worst library grabs of the week.  Both were chosen by the children and approved by me:

WORST: Goldilicious.  Brought to you courtesy of the 2 year old who loves all things pink and princessy right now.  This is part of the uber-saccharine, girly series: Pinkalicious, Silverlicious, Purplelicious, etc. The book had nothing objectionable in it so I allowed it as some cotton candy fluff to our stack.  It does make great fun to watch a big, strong papa read this book to his little girl though… (I’ll have to seek out some traditional, old school princesses to keep this up.)


BEST: King Midas and the Golden Touch.  I can always count on my discerning nine year old to seek out quality artwork and full, satisfying stories.  We have loved Kinuko Y. Craft’s illustrations in the past and she doesn’t disappoint at all in this gorgeous retelling of the famous story.


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Fairy Tales and Reality

Oh so very much to say… So many good books to discuss… Such a busy month though. I am turning this post over to G.K. Chesterton with a section from Tremendous Trifles, (Free on Kindle!) courtesy of Project Guttenburg.  It’s a superb read… The tale he references at the end is free to read online and is sometimes called The Boy Who Went Forth to Learn Fear:

THE RED ANGEL

I find that there really are human beings who think fairy tales bad for children. I do not speak of the man in the green tie, for him I can never count truly human. But a lady has written me an earnest letter saying that fairy tales ought not to be taught to children even if they are true. She says that it is cruel to tell children fairy tales, because it frightens them. You might just as well say that it is cruel to give girls sentimental novels because it makes them cry. All this kind of talk is based on that complete forgetting of what a child is like which has been the firm foundation of so many educational schemes. If you keep bogies and goblins away from children they would make them up for themselves. One small child in the dark can invent more hells than Swedenborg. One small child can imagine monsters too big and black to get into any picture, and give them names too unearthly and cacophonous to have occurred in the cries of any lunatic. The child, to begin with, commonly likes horrors, and he continues to indulge in them even when he does not like them. There is just as much difficulty in saying exactly where pure pain begins in his case, as there is in ours when we walk of our own free will into the torture-chamber of a great tragedy. The fear does not come from fairy tales; the fear comes from the universe of the soul.

…..
The timidity of the child or the savage is entirely reasonable; they are alarmed at this world, because this world is a very alarming place. They dislike being alone because it is verily and indeed an awful idea to be alone. Barbarians fear the unknown for the same reason that Agnostics worship it—because it is a fact. Fairy tales, then, are not responsible for producing in children fear, or any of the shapes of fear; fairy tales do not give the child the idea of the evil or the ugly; that is in the child already, because it is in the world already. Fairy tales do not give the child his first idea of bogey. What fairy tales give the child is his first clear idea of the possible defeat of bogey. The baby has known the dragon intimately ever since he had an imagination. What the fairy tale provides for him is a St. George to kill the dragon.

Exactly what the fairy tale does is this: it accustoms him for a series of clear pictures to the idea that these limitless terrors had a limit, that these shapeless enemies have enemies in the knights of God, that there is something in the universe more mystical than darkness, and stronger than strong fear. When I was a child I have stared at the darkness until the whole black bulk of it turned into one negro giant taller than heaven. If there was one star in the sky it only made him a Cyclops. But fairy tales restored my mental health, for next day I read an authentic account of how a negro giant with one eye, of quite equal dimensions, had been baffled by a little boy like myself (of similar inexperience and even lower social status) by means of a sword, some bad riddles, and a brave heart. Sometimes the sea at night seemed as dreadful as any dragon. But then I was acquainted with many youngest sons and little sailors to whom a dragon or two was as simple as the sea.

Take the most horrible of Grimm’s tales in incident and imagery, the excellent tale of the “Boy who Could not Shudder,” and you will see what I mean. There are some living shocks in that tale. I remember specially a man’s legs which fell down the chimney by themselves and walked about the room, until they were rejoined by the severed head and body which fell down the chimney after them. That is very good. But the point of the story and the point of the reader’s feelings is not that these things are frightening, but the far more striking fact that the hero was not frightened at them. The most fearful of all these fearful wonders was his own absence of fear. He slapped the bogies on the back and asked the devils to drink wine with him; many a time in my youth, when stifled with some modern morbidity, I have prayed for a double portion of his spirit. If you have not read the end of his story, go and read it; it is the wisest thing in the world. The hero was at last taught to shudder by taking a wife, who threw a pail of cold water over him. In that one sentence there is more of the real meaning of marriage than in all the books about sex that cover Europe and America.

“Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that 
dragons can be beaten.”
                                                                                                             -Chesterton

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Library Pick of the Week

I hope to highlight the best of our library picks each time we get new books. These posts won’t usually contain the classics that I love (though we do recheck those out plenty), but simply the best of the current bunch in our basket. Considering that we carefully pick out books and pick out a good 30 or so at a time… this has to be a fairly impressive book to make it into the post.

Today it is King Midas and the Golden Touchby the Charlotte Craft and illustrated by the incredibly talented Kinuko Craft (Charlotte’s daughter). Forget that this is an excellent and faithful retelling of this famous myth… it’s Kinuko’s illustrations that make it a sublime offering to any reader. Each page could be cut out and framed into it’s own piece of delicious art. We discovered K.Y Craft with the excellent Pegasusbook and are now on the hunt in the library buffet line for anything illustrated by her. The detail and magic of it all will delight you. Highly recommended!

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