Eeek! I was playing Brain Quest with my daughter the other day and the question was, "Hansel's little sister was callled...." and she had no clue! She also didn't know Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel (Other than the Barbie Version), or any of those other "classic" fairy tales. I guess I have to thank the people at Barbie a little bit for infusing some new life and interest in some of the old fairy tales,but they are a bit off from the originals.


Can anyone recommend a book that has a good collection of classic fairy tales. I can't believe I read SO much to my daughters but we seem to have missed out on the classics! The stories don't need to be sugared over, but something with good illustrations would be nice. Thanks!!!

~Jenn

Hi Jennifer,

That's great that you want to expose your daughters to the classic fairy tales. I know some people view them as outdated, sexist, whatever but I still think they are so valuable and rich with imagination.

If you haven't seen it already, you might enjoy this thread:
http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1190...

As for books, I'm not sure of a specific collection that I could recommend all in one book. One of my friends really loves Michael Hague's art and I believe there is a collection of fairytales illustrated by him.

Most of the picture book tellings I've read lately are stand-alone books which can get expensive though most are popular enough that your library probably has some available.

The Twelve Dancing Princesses and anything illustrated by Craft! I know there is a "Sleeping Beauty" and "Cinderella" by her, too. These are very traditional tellings and classic-style illustrations.


Little Red Riding Hood

Hansel and Gretel

Firebird

Rapunzel (this version illustrated by Rachel Isadora sets the tale in Africa and is breathtaking!)

The Princess and the Pea (delightfully innovative "illustrations" by Lauren Child)


The Emperor's New Clothes A Tale Set in China (great introduction to Demi's fabulous illustrations and the Chinese setting is really interesting)

Be sure to check out http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/ for more ideas!

Have fun! :-)

Oooooh Thank you! This is exactly what I was looking for. My girls love illustrations...good illustrations are key!

Another HUGE fairy tale fan here! HUGE! I could go on and on, but Kathryn has given great suggestions that pretty much match what I would say! I have a fairy tale shelf that you can take a look at too. Like Kathryn says I think for younger children stand alone picture books are more effective than collections and if they retain the interest larger collections are great!

I hope you find an appealing variety of illustrations with the selections I've mentioned, Jennifer. Glad I could help! :-)

Do be sure to check out Chandra's fairy tale shelf, she has some amazing finds and has made some great recommendations for me.

A suggestion I have for you is to check out any used bookstores in your area. I've picked up old copies of Andersen's Fairy Tales and the Grimm Brothers collected fairy tales at some - many copies are illustrated. Not in the way a children's book of one story is, usually with one plate per story, but I prefer them that way.

I read these when I was quite young and found my imagination quite sufficient to conjuring up images for each tale. Besides, many are quite short (only a couple of pages). I like the originals for first exposure to kids, once they have the basics, they will appreciate more the different 'takes' on the main story.

Have fun exploring them with your kids!

Jennifer wrote: "Eeek! I was playing Brain Quest with my daughter the other day and the question was, "Hansel's little sister was callled...." and she had no clue! She also didn't know Little Red Riding Hood, Rap..."

Check out your local library. Often the classics are located in the non fiction area. Not only can you find the classics but you can find variations from around the world. You will be surprised how many adaptations there are of Cinderella. Many of them have beautiful illustrations. You can make a mock passport. Include the USA. Everytime you read a book stamp the country it came from. Get out the globe and turn it into a geography lesson. And if you enjoy the adventure you will also find books on crafts and cooking from around the world in the non fiction area. Great way to break up summer boredom. Have fun.

I am going to pull this thread up because fairy tales are on my mind. I am reading a fairy tale book that I really like. It is illustrated by a Japanese-American, Gyo Fujikawa. It is a rather old book so the illustrations are quite classic looking. This is the book: http://www.amazon.com/Fairy-Tales-Fables...

Also I recently discovered this site with actress Kathy Kinney. She reads famous fairy tales:

http://www.mrsp.com/

The Barefoot Book of Fairy Tales features 12 classic fairy tales including: The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Rumpelstiltskin, The Sleeping Beauty, Snow-white and Rose-red.
http://store.barefootbooks.com/the-baref...

The Barefoot Book of Princesses introduces readers to seven princesses from around the world. The collection includes The Princess and the Pea and The Sleeping Beauty. A story CD is included.
http://store.barefootbooks.com/the-baref...

Oooh, Kirei, I love Fujikawa's work but have yet to see this one. Onto my list it goes :-)

Thanks for the link - I'm unfamiliar with her work, but looks gorgeous!

Donna-Lee wrote: "The Barefoot Book of Fairy Tales features 12 classic fairy tales including: The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Rumpelstiltskin, The Sleeping Beauty, Snow-white and Rose-r..."

I remember that Barefoot Books carried a very nice selection! I haven't visited their site in a long while.