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163rd out of 259 books
—
151 voters
The Twelve Dancing Princesses
The talented Brigette Barrager lavishly illustrates this beautiful retelling of the Grimm Brothers' "The Twelve Dancing Princesses." In this fairy tale, twelve princesses wake up every morning to find their shoes are worn out and they are totally exhausted! A handsome suitor discovers that the princesses are enchanted, and that each night, in their sleep, they travel to a...more
Hardcover, 40 pages
Published
May 4th 2011
by Chronicle Books
(first published February 2nd 2011)
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I like checking out fairy tale picture books because you can never tell until you start reading whether you're getting just another summary of the Grimm versions, or an updated/improved adaptation. By page one I knew this was the latter, because all the princesses had names. The cobbler (who ends up solving the mystery) and Princess Poppy know and like each other before the action begins, which is a nice change.
It turns out that the princesses are under a spell, essentially sleep-dancing all ni...more
It turns out that the princesses are under a spell, essentially sleep-dancing all ni...more
In this beautifully illustrated book, Barrager retells the classic Grimm fairy tale of the twelve dancing princesses who mysteriously wear out their shoes every night. In this version of the story the king becomes concerned that his daughters won’t be able to rule the kingdom one day because all they do is nap. So he makes a proclamation, the person who can solve the mystery shall have their hearts desire. Doctors, scientists, and others do their best, but it is the cobbler, Pip, who figures out...more
This gets a high rating because my daughter loves it. It is her current favorite princess book. The re-telling from the original might not be the best but I do like the illustrations.
And there is a matching/memory game you can get too! It features the princesses, flowers etc from the book and is probably the prettiest matching game we've ever played.
And there is a matching/memory game you can get too! It features the princesses, flowers etc from the book and is probably the prettiest matching game we've ever played.
The Twleve Dancing Princesses is a fantasy for the intermediate audience. It is for the age range of 8-12 yrs old. The story is about 12 princesses who's shoes keeping getting worn down at night while they are supposed to be sleeping. The king becomes concerned about why the princessess sleep so much during the day and how will they be able to take over for him if they need to. He gets the word out that if someone can find out what's going on they will be rewarded generously. I think little girl...more
This has always been one of my favorite fairy tales from the Brothers Grimm. I can just picture those sore feet and those tired princesses, exhausted after dancing all night long, night after night. This is a simple version of the story, cleaned up for young readers, of course. There are all sorts of great messages in this story, and I love the fact that it is the cobbler who solves the mystery by following the princesses. I liked how the illustrator places Pip at the edge of the frame, watching...more
I love the pictures in this---vivid, jewel-toned, with a retro style reminiscent of the Golden Books I read as a child---and the text is simple enough to be a great read aloud. But this is definitely not my favorite retelling.
From other versions of the tale, I remember a down-on-his-luck soldier, a kindly crone, an invisibility cloak, a sleeping draught, sinister princes...a world edgy with magic where wonders and horrors exist side-by-side. Brigette Barrager's reimagining may be gentler, but I...more
From other versions of the tale, I remember a down-on-his-luck soldier, a kindly crone, an invisibility cloak, a sleeping draught, sinister princes...a world edgy with magic where wonders and horrors exist side-by-side. Brigette Barrager's reimagining may be gentler, but I...more
Originally on Kids Write Reviews:
This book, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, would inspire any little 3, 4, or 5 year old to be anything they want to be and do anything they want to do. If I knew about it when I was younger I would have loved it. It is about 12 princesses who sleep in the garden everyday. The king needs to find a stop to it. Pip, the princesses’ shoe cleaner, is about ready to go on an adventure to find why the princesses are sleeping.
This book is fantasy. I give it 5 out of 5 sta...more
This book, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, would inspire any little 3, 4, or 5 year old to be anything they want to be and do anything they want to do. If I knew about it when I was younger I would have loved it. It is about 12 princesses who sleep in the garden everyday. The king needs to find a stop to it. Pip, the princesses’ shoe cleaner, is about ready to go on an adventure to find why the princesses are sleeping.
This book is fantasy. I give it 5 out of 5 sta...more
Jun 20, 2012
Gmr
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
all ages
Recommended to Gmr by:
Chronicle Books
The cover image above doesn't even begin to do it justice....really! With every turn of the page the tale unfolds with a picture even more beautiful than the last. You'll be charmed by the young princesses as they indulge in their unknown nightly festivities with zest and vigor whilst during the day, they drag their feet too tired to even show any effort. You'll swoon as the young royal shoemaker explores the reasons behind the young ladies sudden shoe abuse and reveals such a courageous and nob...more
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A few weeks back I got pretty heavy handed with the (The Twelve Dancing Princesses.) Some of my troubles stem from it being Grimm--they come with the territory--and some come from the story itself. Imagine my surprise to find more trouble in Barrager's retelling than in Grimm's.
Issues:
-The princesses sleepwalk to the dancing site. It's no longer their choice to go. Boo!
-Barrager took away the princes. They go all this way just to dance by themselves. So, romance has been taken away too. Boo!
-Pi...more
Issues:
-The princesses sleepwalk to the dancing site. It's no longer their choice to go. Boo!
-Barrager took away the princes. They go all this way just to dance by themselves. So, romance has been taken away too. Boo!
-Pi...more
I. Love. The. Illustration. Pure eye candy. The colors are gorgeous. The details are wonderful (I can imagine reading this with a small child and counting all of the princesses and naming colors throughout). It's just gorgeous. Barragger's style is similar to Jon Klassen's illustrations for The Mysterious Howling (The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #1), if Klassen went technicolor and hyper-feminine, and at the same time has the classic look of an (enlarged format) Disney Golden Book. Any...more
This is a retelling of a classic fairytale. The storyline has been slightly changed, making it different from many of the others I've read, this one having more of a magical element to it and having a slightly simpler storyline. These changes were well done and offered a different twist that I enjoyed. The illustrations though are my favorite part. They are bright and colorful and full of whimsy which perfectly fit the story.
I.LOVE.THIS.BOOK! The illustration is simply gorgeous! I recommend this book to anyone with a little girl - you can spend so much time pouring over the lovely pictures and imagine being princesses together! My daughter absolutely loves this book (she is 4).
I don't quite agree with the reviewers that are rating the book low because they don't like Grimm. This book is an adaption of a Grimm fairytale - what do you expect?
I don't quite agree with the reviewers that are rating the book low because they don't like Grimm. This book is an adaption of a Grimm fairytale - what do you expect?
A simplified version of the Grimms' tale. The illustrations are digitally rendered--seeing more of this, no surprise--- and don't have the magic of other tellings, especially my favorite illustrated by K.Y. Craft. But it's very kid-friendly, no scary compnents, and surely will be enjoyed by fans of the princess story.
Good version of this tale. I think this one will be a great one to get readers of princess books to read some of the more classic princess tales.
Picked it @ random from the library shelf... didn't quite realize it was a childrens book. Interesting story.
The illustrations in this book are beautiful. I saw it in a clearance bin a snatched it up. Very cute!
Beautifully illustrated and a cute fairy tale. My girls enjoyed it.
same story.
I really liked this version of the Twelve Dancing Princesses for a few reasons. One, the pictures were colorful and fanciful and reminded me slightly of the old Disney cartoon style. Two, the author adapted this story in a way that was appropriate for very young readers--not too scary, not too much magic, so it was a good one to read to Katya over and over. I'll look for more by this author/illustrator.
"In this fairy tale, twelve princesses wake up every morning to find their shoes are worn out and they are totally exhausted! A handsome suitor discovers that the princesses are enchanted, and that each night, in their sleep, they travel to a magical world to dance at a ball. Will this handsome suitor be able to break the spell and rescue the princesses?" - product description
A nicely-rendered retelling of the Brothers Grimm classic.
The Kindle version is nothing special. There are no illustrations, and the narrative is bland at best. Very disappointing version of this wonderful fairy tale classic.
Apr 29, 2013
Christa Musgrove
added it
Apr 11, 2013
Marvspaxyahoo.com
marked it as to-read
Mar 22, 2013
Joana De
marked it as to-read
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