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|---|---|---|
Searching... Monmouth Public Library | J 398.2 GRIMM | Searching... Unknown |
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Summary
Summary
A little girl walks to the end of the world to find her seven brothers and free them from enchantment.
Summary
A little girl walks to the end of the world to find her seven brothers and free them from enchantment.
Author Notes
Jacob W. Grimm (1785-1863) and his brother Wilhelm K. Grimm (1786-1859) pioneered the study of German philosophy, law, mythology and folklore, but they are best known for their collection of fairy tales. These include such popular stories as Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty and The Frog Prince. Commonly referred to now as Grimm's Fairy Tales, their collection was published as Kinder-und-Hausmarchen (Children's and Household Tales, 1812-15).
The brothers were born thirteen months apart in the German province of Hesse, and were inseparable from childhood. Throughout their lives they showed a marked lack of sibling rivalry. Most of their works were written together, a practice begun in childhood when they shared a desk and sustained throughout their adult lives. Since their lives and work were so collaborative, it is difficult now to differentiate between them, but of course there were differences.-
Jacob, who studied for a time in Paris, was fascinated with variant spellings of older words. He articulated "Grimm's Law," the rules of which are still used today to determine correspondences between the consonants of German and languages in the Indo-European family. Jacob was bolder and more experimental than Wilhelm, and was rumored to be a lively dancer. Throughout his life, Jacob kept rigidly to schedule and could be extremely focused on work that demanded close attention to detail. He never married, but was a loving uncle to Wilhelm's children.
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm are buried side by side in Berlin.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Jacob W. Grimm (1785-1863) and his brother Wilhelm K. Grimm (1786-1859) pioneered the study of German philosophy, law, mythology and folklore, but they are best known for their collection of fairy tales. These include such popular stories as Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty and The Frog Prince. Commonly referred to now as Grimm's Fairy Tales, their collection was published as Kinder-und-Hausmarchen (Children's and Household Tales, 1812-15).
The brothers were born thirteen months apart in the German province of Hesse, and were inseparable from childhood. Throughout their lives they showed a marked lack of sibling rivalry. Most of their works were written together, a practice begun in childhood when they shared a desk and sustained throughout their adult lives. Since their lives and work were so collaborative, it is difficult now to differentiate between them, but of course there were differences.-
Jacob, who studied for a time in Paris, was fascinated with variant spellings of older words. He articulated "Grimm's Law," the rules of which are still used today to determine correspondences between the consonants of German and languages in the Indo-European family. Jacob was bolder and more experimental than Wilhelm, and was rumored to be a lively dancer. Throughout his life, Jacob kept rigidly to schedule and could be extremely focused on work that demanded close attention to detail. He never married, but was a loving uncle to Wilhelm's children.
Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm are buried side by side in Berlin.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (10)
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Fairy-tale purists may prefer the direct translation of the Grimms' text by Elizabeth Crawford, illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger (Picture Book Studio, 1991), but nothing is lost in this adaptation. In fact, much is gained. The original story of the father's curse that transforms his seven sons into ravens and the subsequent journey by their sister to rescue them begins with an emphasis on the father. Geringer concentrates on the girl and her thoughts, thus strengthening the bond between young readers and the protagonist. Her journey to the sun, the moon, and the stars is foreshadowed by another addition-her discovery of the seven little shirts embroidered with the heavenly bodies. They serve as both the catalyst for the revelation of the horrible family secret and as the source of transformation for the unfortunate boys. The sun, moon and stars are personified as a boy, goat, and dwarf, respectively. Their conversations with the child are lengthier than in the original version. The detail of the girl chopping off her finger to gain entry to the raven's home has been eliminated; emphasis has been placed instead on ``the psychological sacrifice of growing up in a household that harbored so dark and shadowy a secret.'' The total effect is a tale that resounds with the range and depth of familial emotions. The story is rich in visual and verbal imagery and symbol, making this a good choice for discussion. Gazsi paints the human characters in a very realistic manner, outlining them in black so they are distinguished further from the settings, which are almost cartoonlike. He employs a range of moods and uses light and darkness effectively. Subtle details await discovery, e.g., the rough, folksy look of the family's wooden table and chairs invites comparison with the icy blue forms of the ravens' Glass Mountain counterparts. A skillful retelling, with notes on sources and changes.-Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
The poetic, immediate style of this deeply satisfying adaptation honors the Grimm tradition. To the original tale about a girl who sets out to rescue her seven older brothers, turned into ravens by their father's unwitting curse, Geringer (A Three Hat Day) adds elements that make the connections between the characters more tangible: a rattle is carried off by the brothers as a memento of their beloved sister; and, planning to travel ``as far as the sky is blue,'' the girl wears her brothers' shirts, each of which her mother has embroidered with a sun, moon and stars. In her encounters with these celestial beings, the eldest brother's shirt is seared and ripped. When her brother appears, the holes in the shirt correspond to wounds in his dramatically outsized bird body. The girl heals him and mends his shirt, enabling him, like his brothers, to regain human form. Gazsi's (Kimbo's Marble) meticulously textured and luminous paintings gorgeously illuminate the fantastical journey. The jewel-toned colors of the seven shirts are echoed throughout, yet the enchanted backdrop never overwhelms the story's focus-the little girl. Her expressive, photo-realistic face is a poignant reminder that her quest, however fanciful, is motivated by an essentially human and powerful desire to make her family whole again. Ages 5-9. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Surrounded by the bold, glowing colors and prominent black outlines of the rest of the artwork, the realism of Gazsi's human faces is disconcerting. In addition, the setting resembles a fantasy world more than it does a fairy-tale land. However, readers will applaud the courageous young heroine as she travels on a quest to find her seven older brothers, who were turned into ravens by a curse. From HORN BOOK 1994, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A father curses his seven sons and they turn into ravens in this ever-popular tale. Here the basic ribs of the story remain the same, from the sister's remorse that she, even innocently, was the cause of the brothers' transformation, to her difficult journey, subsequent sacrifice, and salvation. It's an edge-of-the-seat tale and chillingly macabre in Bell's translation, which doesn't fiddle with the scene in which the girl cuts off her finger to use as a key for passage into a glass mountain. Sauvant works in a surreal style, with Magritte-like skies and an obsession with time and space that becomes almost clichéd. The symbolism of the pictures overwhelms the nuances of the story: When the sister appears with all her fingers in place in the last scene, but no restoration is mentioned in the text, children are likely to read it as a mistake. (Picture book/folklore. 5-8)
Booklist Review
Ages 6-9. This stylish version of a well-known Grimm tale features a young girl determined to rescue her seven brothers, who have been turned into ravens as a result of their father's impulsive curse. On her way, she encounters a round, brightly lit boy (the sun) and a tall shepherdess carrying a goat (the moon). She also meets a dwarf wearing a jeweled crown (the stars), who directs her to the Glass Mountain, where her brothers live. With their sister's help, the birds don shirts sewn by their mother and are returned to their human forms. The language is spare yet elegant and beautifully complemented by the richly colored paintings. Gazsi's use of light and shadow and the nearly photographic clarity of the characters' faces are especially distinctive. This polished offering, which includes source notes, will be a welcome addition to any folktale collection. (Reviewed September 1, 1994)0060235527Kay Weisman
School Library Journal Review
K-Gr 3-Fairy-tale purists may prefer the direct translation of the Grimms' text by Elizabeth Crawford, illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger (Picture Book Studio, 1991), but nothing is lost in this adaptation. In fact, much is gained. The original story of the father's curse that transforms his seven sons into ravens and the subsequent journey by their sister to rescue them begins with an emphasis on the father. Geringer concentrates on the girl and her thoughts, thus strengthening the bond between young readers and the protagonist. Her journey to the sun, the moon, and the stars is foreshadowed by another addition-her discovery of the seven little shirts embroidered with the heavenly bodies. They serve as both the catalyst for the revelation of the horrible family secret and as the source of transformation for the unfortunate boys. The sun, moon and stars are personified as a boy, goat, and dwarf, respectively. Their conversations with the child are lengthier than in the original version. The detail of the girl chopping off her finger to gain entry to the raven's home has been eliminated; emphasis has been placed instead on ``the psychological sacrifice of growing up in a household that harbored so dark and shadowy a secret.'' The total effect is a tale that resounds with the range and depth of familial emotions. The story is rich in visual and verbal imagery and symbol, making this a good choice for discussion. Gazsi paints the human characters in a very realistic manner, outlining them in black so they are distinguished further from the settings, which are almost cartoonlike. He employs a range of moods and uses light and darkness effectively. Subtle details await discovery, e.g., the rough, folksy look of the family's wooden table and chairs invites comparison with the icy blue forms of the ravens' Glass Mountain counterparts. A skillful retelling, with notes on sources and changes.-Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
The poetic, immediate style of this deeply satisfying adaptation honors the Grimm tradition. To the original tale about a girl who sets out to rescue her seven older brothers, turned into ravens by their father's unwitting curse, Geringer (A Three Hat Day) adds elements that make the connections between the characters more tangible: a rattle is carried off by the brothers as a memento of their beloved sister; and, planning to travel ``as far as the sky is blue,'' the girl wears her brothers' shirts, each of which her mother has embroidered with a sun, moon and stars. In her encounters with these celestial beings, the eldest brother's shirt is seared and ripped. When her brother appears, the holes in the shirt correspond to wounds in his dramatically outsized bird body. The girl heals him and mends his shirt, enabling him, like his brothers, to regain human form. Gazsi's (Kimbo's Marble) meticulously textured and luminous paintings gorgeously illuminate the fantastical journey. The jewel-toned colors of the seven shirts are echoed throughout, yet the enchanted backdrop never overwhelms the story's focus-the little girl. Her expressive, photo-realistic face is a poignant reminder that her quest, however fanciful, is motivated by an essentially human and powerful desire to make her family whole again. Ages 5-9. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Surrounded by the bold, glowing colors and prominent black outlines of the rest of the artwork, the realism of Gazsi's human faces is disconcerting. In addition, the setting resembles a fantasy world more than it does a fairy-tale land. However, readers will applaud the courageous young heroine as she travels on a quest to find her seven older brothers, who were turned into ravens by a curse. From HORN BOOK 1994, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A father curses his seven sons and they turn into ravens in this ever-popular tale. Here the basic ribs of the story remain the same, from the sister's remorse that she, even innocently, was the cause of the brothers' transformation, to her difficult journey, subsequent sacrifice, and salvation. It's an edge-of-the-seat tale and chillingly macabre in Bell's translation, which doesn't fiddle with the scene in which the girl cuts off her finger to use as a key for passage into a glass mountain. Sauvant works in a surreal style, with Magritte-like skies and an obsession with time and space that becomes almost clichéd. The symbolism of the pictures overwhelms the nuances of the story: When the sister appears with all her fingers in place in the last scene, but no restoration is mentioned in the text, children are likely to read it as a mistake. (Picture book/folklore. 5-8)
Booklist Review
Ages 6-9. This stylish version of a well-known Grimm tale features a young girl determined to rescue her seven brothers, who have been turned into ravens as a result of their father's impulsive curse. On her way, she encounters a round, brightly lit boy (the sun) and a tall shepherdess carrying a goat (the moon). She also meets a dwarf wearing a jeweled crown (the stars), who directs her to the Glass Mountain, where her brothers live. With their sister's help, the birds don shirts sewn by their mother and are returned to their human forms. The language is spare yet elegant and beautifully complemented by the richly colored paintings. Gazsi's use of light and shadow and the nearly photographic clarity of the characters' faces are especially distinctive. This polished offering, which includes source notes, will be a welcome addition to any folktale collection. (Reviewed September 1, 1994)0060235527Kay Weisman