Publisher's Weekly Review
This magnificently illustrated Caldecott Honor book features an understated retelling of the classic tale. Ages 3-8. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Direct and unembellished, Lesser's retelling resembles that of the earliest German edition of Grimm, published in 1812, before the ferocity of the mother had been softened by the term [cf2]stepmother[cf1] and without the later addition of the final episode of the duck. A visual feast, the illustrations frequently recall Flemish and French genre painting of the seventeenth century, while the idyllic woodland scenes reflect a later Romantic mood. From HORN BOOK Fall 1999, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
An odd, static work for Zehnsky--composed of painterly, Old Master paintings. But these have the eerie, haunting quality of German Romanticism (or, sometimes, of Balthus)--with intimations of real malevolence in the mother who'd leave the children in the forest, truly Wagnerian visions of the forest at sundown and in moonlight, distorted perspectives and drastic foreshortenings in the scenes of imminent danger, and even a welcome-home from their father that works in the same gestural mode. The telling is also stern, unadorned. (Lesser's appended Note explains the omission of the familiar, ""Nibble, nibble, little mouse/Who's that nibbling at my house?"") For anyone who wants a cruel and joyous, dire and tender ""Hansel and Gretel,"" this is it--with the screaming old witch visible through the door of the burning oven as Gretel slams it shut. But be warned: it's the story of good triumphing over evil, not a fairy tale with a happy ending. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Richly detailed paintings evoke the German origins of this Grimm tale and recall northern Renaissance painters such as Peter Brueghel. Carefully detailed endpapers set the scene and the interplay of light and dark values heightens the drama.
Publisher's Weekly Review
This magnificently illustrated Caldecott Honor book features an understated retelling of the classic tale. Ages 3-8. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Direct and unembellished, Lesser's retelling resembles that of the earliest German edition of Grimm, published in 1812, before the ferocity of the mother had been softened by the term [cf2]stepmother[cf1] and without the later addition of the final episode of the duck. A visual feast, the illustrations frequently recall Flemish and French genre painting of the seventeenth century, while the idyllic woodland scenes reflect a later Romantic mood. From HORN BOOK Fall 1999, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
An odd, static work for Zehnsky--composed of painterly, Old Master paintings. But these have the eerie, haunting quality of German Romanticism (or, sometimes, of Balthus)--with intimations of real malevolence in the mother who'd leave the children in the forest, truly Wagnerian visions of the forest at sundown and in moonlight, distorted perspectives and drastic foreshortenings in the scenes of imminent danger, and even a welcome-home from their father that works in the same gestural mode. The telling is also stern, unadorned. (Lesser's appended Note explains the omission of the familiar, ""Nibble, nibble, little mouse/Who's that nibbling at my house?"") For anyone who wants a cruel and joyous, dire and tender ""Hansel and Gretel,"" this is it--with the screaming old witch visible through the door of the burning oven as Gretel slams it shut. But be warned: it's the story of good triumphing over evil, not a fairy tale with a happy ending. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Richly detailed paintings evoke the German origins of this Grimm tale and recall northern Renaissance painters such as Peter Brueghel. Carefully detailed endpapers set the scene and the interplay of light and dark values heightens the drama.