Jim Henson's The Storyteller: The Novelization

by Anthony Minghella

The official novelization of Jim Henson’s Emmy Award-winning television series along with a behind-the-scenes look at the show’s production from the Jim Henson Archives.

Timeless tales, beautifully told. Presented in a stunning new edition, Jim Henson’s The Storyteller features nine folktales based on Henson’s Emmy Award-winning television series, written by Academy Award winner Anthony Minghella. This edition features stunning new illustrations by Hannah Christenson and Eva Eskelinen and photographs from the Jim Henson Archives that provide a rare look behind-the-scenes of JIM HENSON’S CREATURE SHOP during the filming of the beloved series.

Genres: Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Short Stories, Fiction, Young Adult, Collections, Folklore

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

Reviews

[Liz Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up with the Grimm Brothers, and Hans Christian Andersen, and old folk tales from Russia, and the Middle East, and North Africa. Jim Henson and John Hurt brought these stories to life on the screen, and I have never been more thankful about a TV-series. Once I have children I will play this for them, and when I am old, I will play this until my eyes are sore.

These two introduced me to the most beautiful narration ever, and the cutest dog side-kick:


I love this so much:


I will never forget them:


Memories resurface:

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A gift from the lovely Rebecca.

Update:
This is a collection of nine stories based on the Jim Henson series of the same name.

Fairy tales are so delightfully symmetrical, so archetypal! A good fairy tale reflects our collective subconscious and thereby represents all sorts of things to all sorts of people.

Of course, for me, it's all about the Enneagram! Wistful princesses and envious villains represent type 4. Both kindly and manipulative mother figures represent type 2. Both wise and evil hermits are 5's. Kings are 8's. Adventurers are 7's. Even the Enneagram connections come into play, as princesses are often antagonized and/or helped by 2's, adventurers are guided or antagonized by solitary 5's and moral (or moralistic) 1's. Etc, etc. It's such fun!

My favorite from this collection was Sapsorrow, a variation on Cinderella. Rather than argue with the Cinderella archetype, Minghella preserves her basic 4ishness and, in fact, deepens the narrative through his development of the character.

These are stories to rival Hans Christian Andersen.

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are of a certain age, you worship Jim Henson. You may not know it, but you do. Maybe The Muppets converted you (Miss Piggy, after all, taught Yoda), maybe it was Labrinyth (ah, David Bowie) or maybe, just maybe, it was The Storyteller.

Henson's Storyteller series appeared on both boardcast tv and HBO. There were two seasons. The first made up of European fairy tales and starring Sean Bean, Gaberielle Anwar, and John Hurt. The second made up of Greek myths, starring John Hurt and Gina Bellman. This collection is the stories from the first season, the European Fairy Tales.

The series is very good. It involes the Storyteller telling stories to his dog. For years, I knew that the Storyteller was also the voice of Strider in the animated LOTR. Then I watched I, Claudius, and there was the Storyteller as Caliguia, prancing around.

Very strange.

The late Anthony Minghella who scripted many of the episodes wrote this collection. While there several passages taken directly from the series (and if you have seen the series, John Hurt reads the tales in your head), there are several additional passages that flesh out more from the series.

One of the good things the series had going for it was the fact that Henson and Minghella did not try to hide the darker edges of the fairy tales. It is true, they soften "Sapsorrow" (thier version of "Donkeyskin")to a degree, but then there is the Oscar Wilde inspired "Heartless Giant" whose ending is not softened.

While the collection is not a feminist collection, two of the tales have princesses rescuing princes. Instead of a traditional "Cinderella", the "Donkeyskin" variaent is used. This is a "Cinderella" crossed to a degree with "Beauty and the Beast" except the beast is female. There is a more traditional version of "Beauty and the Beast" as well with "Hans, My Hedgehog".

The art work is clearly inspired by the creature of Henson's puppet shop and clearly reflects the design of the series.

All in all, this is a good collection and a good companion book.

[Gretchen Crookes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful. Well told and heartbreakingly simple.

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting book - yes its a collection of fairy tales some famous some not so - all with a subtle twist and a retelling as they should be. But it is more the fact that it is based on the less well known TV series of the same name - a strange mix of storytelling and live action all with that Jim Henson touch of the surreal.
So how did i come across it - well if there as ever a reason to visit those little corner charity shops this was it - I never knew this book existed let alone how much fun it was to read. This book was marked as a simple children's book (not sure how well a gentle child would take some of the stories or their tone) rather than a window back to my childhood and all the nostalgia and wonder in brought.

[Andrea Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you've never seen "The Storyteller" before, this is still going to be a great read. It gathers together traditional fairy and folk tales from around the world and puts a new twist on them so they can stand on their own. However, before you begin, I would highly recommend watching an episode on YouTube so you can hear John Hurt's voice in your head as you work your way through these 9 timeless tales. And who doesn't love the Muppets?!

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

An old man with his old dog sit by the fire and trade stories, stories from around the world; stories with hints of truth and currents of the fantastic.
Different artists help give the stories a different feel and make for an exciting read.

[Violet · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully inventive and imaginative and entertaining set of fairy tales. They were all different and an absolutely amazing and a captivating read. They were like nothing I’ve ever read before from Grimm or anyone else. And I understand these are just retellings of traditional tales, but the writing it was just so brilliant and whimsical that you can’t help but give great praise to the writer, Anthony Minghella. I absolutely love the writing in this book!

1) “The Three Ravens” = This was a truly captivating tale, taking that whole evil witch/stepmother concept to a whole new level. I have no doubt that this tale might’ve been the basis of Snow White or even the product of it. Whatever it is, I still love it. You can’t help but get sucked into the sad plight of the Princess, having to escape the Witch not only once but twice. I’m telling you that despite the fact that I think Disney is an evil monster bend on taking over the entertainment world, I think that this fairy tale would make a magnificent Disney movie. And yes, it does have a happy ending.

2) “Hans My Hedgehog” = I didn’t quite know what to think of this strange and brilliant tale at first. It is Beauty and the Beast in nature in which a princess falls in love with a creature (Hans my hedgehog), but it was different than your Disney classic or even the Grimm original. Han was born a half man, half hedgehog creature and practically tricked a King into betrothing his daughter to him. Your feelings about Hans really go up and down. You first feel sorry for him, but then you think he’s cruel for tricking the King, and then you start to feel sorry for him again because you find out he is actually cursed and wants desperately to be love. Like I said, a bit strange and hard to have a definite opinion on. So therefore not really Disney material.

3) “The Soldier and Death” = Probably one of my favorites because it’s not a fairy tale that you would think of in the normal sense. There is no Princess or Prince or anything of that sort. But it is still very good. It’s about how you shouldn’t mess with Death because a “life protracted is protracted woe” (Samuel Johnson). And it’s also a warning to be careful for what you wish for, because if you don’t want death and try to stop him, then death won’t ever come back to you. You will live forever, always wondering between Heaven and Hell. And that’s exactly what happened to the Soldier. It’s sad, yes, but just a great story.

4) “The Luck Child” = This story was alright. It had your classic evil royalty and destined prince. But the boy (the Luck Child) that was supposed to overcome this evil King, just did so because of luck and the help of the Little Man. He didn’t really do much. He had it all done for him practically, so I didn’t really feel for him and therefore I couldn’t really like this story all that much. Nevertheless, the tale was, while the weakest of them all, still brilliantly written and quite a fun concept.

5) “The True Bride” = Another one of my favorites. It kind of had a Cinderella vibe to it (but not as much as a later story), what with a poor orphan girl having to work as a slave to cruel troll only to have the troll’s sister take away her Beloved. It was a very captivating story and one full of magic centering on a white lion (therefore reminding me of Narnia). The illustrations in this story are some of my favorite in the whole book, and I just adore this brilliant tale. It’s just different enough not to really fit any of the preset Disney molds, and I love it.

6) “Fearnot” = This was a fun story, and one of the few ones where the main character went through a major change. It’s about a boy (Fearnot) that’s not afraid of anything, and goes out to learn what fear is, and only after a few adventures where he beats terrible monsters he finds fear when his sweetheart almost dies. Fearnot is a great character. It’s all silly and just great fun. And I find it so cool that there’s a lot alliteration in this tale. And yes, I know that I’m a nerd.

7) “The Heartless Giant” = A wonderfully original and enchanting story. It’s not like anything else I’ve read in the fairy tale universe. It has a sad ending though, because after all the bad this Heartless Giant did, in the end he was willing to take back his heart and repent, but the angry villagers still killed him despite Prince Leo’s protests. Nevertheless, I still feel this is another great story, and the sad ending just gives it another note of originality.

8) “Sapsorrow” = Now this was the one that was most like Cinderella. In fact it was so close to the Disney version that we all know and maybe love, that it could’ve been a retelling of it instead of a whole brand new story. But that doesn’t mean it still wasn’t a fantastic fable. The only problem I have with it is the Prince. He is so pompous and proud, and I hate to say it but he doesn’t change much by the end. And because of this I have a hard time feeling for him.

9) “A Story Short” = This was the weirdest of all the stories. It harkens back or serves as a basis to the really odd and obscure Grimm’s fairy tales. The whole thing was like a dream, with all the strange magic and enchantments. And even stranger, is the fact that this tale is written in first person with is really weird for a fairy tale. Overall, possibly one of the most bizarre fairy tales I’ve ever read.

Now that I’ve talked about all of the tales I would like to say something about the thing that ties them all together beside the brilliantly magnificent writing: the illustrations. They are all wonderfully detailed and artistically beautiful. The colors are vivid and the expressions perfectly capture the mood of each scene they depict. They are done in the classic fairy tale style yet I haven’t seen anything like it. I absolutely love them.

Now, I will do what I do with all anthologies: rate the stories from most favorite to least favorite. Okay here it goes. “The Soldier and Death,” “The True Bride,” “The Three Ravens,” “The Heartless Giant,” “Sapsorrow,” “Fearnot,” “Hans My Hedgehog,” “A Story Short,” and “The Luck Child.”

And there you go. That’s really it. A bunch of truly wonderful, brilliant, original, beautiful, and amazing fairy tales. Probably my favorite set of fairy tales to date.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jim Henson’s The StoryTeller is a collection of nine stories, influenced from European folktales. The stories are written by Anthony Minghella. I never have understood why stories like this are aimed at children. Do children really enjoy stories about witches using their magical charms to force a marriage with a King? Or a Half-Hedgehog-Half-Man tricking a King into letting him marry his daughter? Or a King attempting to kill a child prodigy? Most of the tales do have similar themes, so expect some kind of King, Princess, and magic involved. I thought the first few stories were actually quite enjoyable, my particular favourite was “The Soldier and Death” which saw the titular soldier constantly overcome situations using his magic sack in inventive ways. However, the stories soon became dull; so it's a bit of a mixed bag.

[Debra Clewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Back in the ‘80s, my late husband and I watched the TV series Jim Henson’s The Storyteller every week. We loved each episode, which used a combination of puppets and humans. The Storyteller was played by actor John Hurt, who sat in front of a blazing fireplace to introduce each story along with his muppet-style dog. Based on old European folk tales, they were sometimes sad, often times cruel, and always interesting. Many of them featured royal families, where the prince or princess waited years to finally be with their true love, often facing spells from witches or goblins. I thoroughly enjoyed reading these tales, beautifully told by the late Anthony Minghella. Sadly, it was an unfinished project for Henson who had planned on more episodes before his untimely death in 1990. This book is a treat for the imagination.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the longest time, the only episode of Jim Henson's "The Storyteller" that I'd seen was "Sapsorrow." Recently I finally saw the rest and continued to be blown away. This collection of scripts-turned-to-prose stories is a fantastic addition to anyone's collection of fairytales, even if you haven't seen the series. The writing is great, capturing both the fairytale feel and the individual tone of the stories themselves. The tales have elements of the familiar, but mixed and adjusted in new, surprising ways. Highly recommended!

[Kelly V · Rating 5 out of 5]

After watching the THE STORYTELLER TV series, I was really excited that there was a book that told the stories from the show. As I read this book, scenes played in my mind I remembered and loved. I loved the illustrations for each story as well as actual photos of Jim Henson and all who contributed to creating THE STORYTELLER. The final chapter, A SEAT BY THE FIRE, explains how Jim Henson and Anthony Minghella worked together to bring fairy tales to life. If you LOVE fairy tales & you’re a HUGE FAN of Jim Henson, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book.

[Charly Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The show is a treasured memory from my childhood and reading this book I was brought back to those times. The stories are written in such a way they create strong vivid imagery as though you are 8 years old watching the show in the arms of your mother again.

For those who read this book without such a childhood fondness for the story I can see it being a book that entraps you and transports you to the settings in a similar manner.

[Erika Powers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome! I only read the first chapter called The Three Ravens but loved it. Follows elements of fairy tales, trios, spells, princess, brothers, villains, royalty, but its not TOLD in a thrice elementary pen like Grimms or Andersons. Its eloquent, and remarks real shock; shirts and an evil curse that turn the brothers into ravens. Blind, panic, shrieks, beaks, sting, staring, willing. Shits good.

[Eddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Story Teller is a very hard to find, underrated show. Bringing all the magic of Jim Hensons workshop to life, each story is from classic folk tales and mythology. This wonderful novelization adapts each story so that they can be read as a bed time story like all the classic fairytales. If you enjoy magic you and adventures you should read this book.

[Justin Howe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anthony Minghella's poetic prose comes to life in this collection. Absolutely nothing is lost in translation from the television show to this collection, and the illustrations are gorgeous. If you're a Storyteller fan, this is required reading.

[Kayla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a word-for-word account of the TV show, though it lacks the back-and-forth between the Storyteller and the dog. I liked the illustrations and the extra material about creating the show from the Jim Henson Archives was really interesting to read.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely set of well written stories.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Charming, but over-written. I wind up zoning out and skipping to the illustrations (which rule).

[Natalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A neat little read for a Jim Henson property I have yet to see.

[kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was wonderful. A must-read for any lover of fairy tales.

[Lbaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book.
Highly recommend.

[Marah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing and fun read. I remember watching the StoryTeller as a kid and this was a good novelization and refresher!

[Mouse · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my go-to answers when asked my favorite book (perhaps a cheat because it contains multiple stories of which I also struggle to pick a favorite.) Lovely book with almost identical prose to that of the show, which means I get to read it in the voice that the Storyteller told it to me when I was little. Literally if soup was a book. Is this anything? To me it's everything.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing fairy tales for older kids and adults

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great novel. It inspired me to actually check out the miniseries it is based on. I loved all of the stories and even some of the behind the scenes stuff on the show.

Really great read.

[Pamela Anneliese · Rating 2 out of 5]

First, let me start off by saying that I am glad that this book is back in print after so long, simply because it deserves as much attention as it can possibly receive. It's always been one of my absolute favourites, and I'm happy to say that I own the other two editions (USA and UK) that have come before. So, please realise that I don't take issue with the novelization itself, and actually can't recommend it enough! Anthony Minghella's writing is sheer genius!

My issue is with how the book is presented.

This current edition, while presented as a hardcover with some new and fascinating behind-the-scene production images of the series at the back of the book, is disappointing. I just expected so much more love and sophistication to be visible in the offering up of it. I would have liked for an even higher quality presentation such as glossy pages, leatherbound, and a red silk bookmark attached to the binding -- maybe even a CD included at the back in a vinyl sleeve of John Hurt, the Storyteller himself, reading the stories -- but we don't get that.

Also, don't be fooled. Instead of Darcy May's beautiful illustrations which Amazon and GoodReads both claim to be included in this new edition, we get instead lack-lustre black-and-white drawings from a different artist which really don't do the book justice or transport the reader into the stories at all. If you're fond of the classic faerytale illustrative style and expecting it in this volume, I fear you will be sorely disappointed.

It's very frustrating. For anyone who loves the Storyteller series and who were introduced to or had their love deepen for European faerytales through it, this edition really is a letdown. Archaia could have pulled out all the stops and truly have made this a grand book on the scale that shops like Folio Society do with theirs... but they don't even come close.

For a "newbie," this is fine, I suppose. But if you want better than "fine," get the 1991 Boxtree edition (ISBN: 978-1852837211) featuring Darcy May's colour illustrations or, better yet, the UK edition with high-quality screen captures from the series itself.

[Misty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jim Henson's The Storyteller: The Novelization

Anthony Minghella, Jim Henson, Darcy May

Completed Date: 1/21/15
Rating out of 5: 4


Before you read to far, you should know that I don't do Synopsis type reviews - if you want a synopsis then you can go read the synopsis.

What I want to do here is give my opinion of the book. **Spoilers may happen, but aren't likely**



Check me out on www.goodreads.com!


The Storyteller is a collection fairy tales and short stories. For Christmas 2014 I received this book along with novelizations of The Labyrinth and The Dark Crystal. Though this was my least favorite of the three, maybe because I didn't grow up watching a move of it, I still rated it 4 out of 5.


I don't generally like reading short stories or fairy tales, but these were unique in that the story was either the retelling of something familiar or it was completely new or original. I liked the combination very much. It was actually refreshing for once to read a short story and not be committed or tied down to a novel or even a trilogy.


I liked reading this one before bed - it was less of a struggle to put it down because I didn't feel as though I had five hundred more pages to adventure through and I knew the next story would be there in the morning, instead of traipsing around without me like so many of my other fantasy stories seem to do.

[Zoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jim Henson’s The StoryTeller by Anthony Minghella is a collection of nine not very well known European folktales: The Three Ravens, Hans My Hedgehog, The Soldier and Death, The Luck Child, The True Bride, Fearnot, The Heartless Giant, Sapsorrow, and A Story Short. Each tale holds its own independent of the others but as a collection something magical happens. The reader is able to float in and out of the book with ease and pick up at the beginning of a new story. Each folktale on its own takes a quick reader between 15 and 20 minutes to read. The book is interspersed with illustrations by Darcy May, which contributes to the story and help guide the reader’s imagination along.


Jim Henson’s The StoryTeller is based off of the 1988 Emmy award winning short television series of the same name. It is one of those rare circumstances where book was inspired by television and one of those even rarer circumstances where it is impossible to choose which version outshines the other in quality. Both are absolutely stellar!

[Tara Brigden · Rating 5 out of 5]

“When people told themselves their past with stories, explained their present with stories, foretold the future with stories, the best place by the fire was kept for the storyteller.”

Honestly, the series is one of my favourites to this day, and when I discovered there was a book form? Of course I had to have it.

The thing I love about this book is that it's written pretty much the same way the Storyteller tells you the stories in the show.

"But it didn't feel right did it, to give the old boy less than the others, so he gave him both halves." - The Soldier and Death.

This book is definitely a must-have for all Jim Henson fans and fans of the storyteller, truly well-written and a fun and great read!