Thursday, December 5, 2013

The Snow Queen

This is possibly the most gorgeous book version I have ever seen of The Snow Queen from Hans Christian Andersen.  It is illustrated by Mary Engelbreit and it is a delight to the eyes!

My boy first heard of this story a few months ago, but not in its entirety so he asked me if I could get him the book.  There are many many picture books of this story but I chose the one from Mary Engelbreit because I love her illustrations.  Also, this story could be quite dark and scary for a child so I was hoping Engelbreit's adorable and innocent style of drawings would be more age appropriate for children.

If you are not familiar with the story, here is a quick summary: Kay and Gerda are two young children and they are the best of friends. One day, Kay gets an evil glass shard in his eye and heart and he becomes mean and sees the world differently.  He is then kidnapped by the Snow Queen and Gerda goes on a quest to find him. 

The story is full of magic and suspense!  It is quite long, especially for young children, but it was captivating from start to end and I think it will be something that my son would want to re-read on his own.  I can't wait for my baby girl to be old enough to understand the story too!

I ordered the book via Amazon a month ago and hid it for the Christmas Book Advent.  Two days ago, my son opened the wrapped book and he was very glad to read the whole story at last.  He loved the pictures and I couldn't be happier with this purchase.  It is a BIG book and it's worth every penny!

I posted some pictures on my Instagram account this morning but if you don't have Instagram, I am showing them here below.





Aren't those the sweetest illustrations you have ever seen?  Please pardon my enthusiasm for I am such a fan of Mary Engelbreit!

Do you like this story?  I loved re-reading this tale and I must say that I now want to buy all the illustrated Snow Queen books out there!  If you have a different version of this book, please let me know!  Which one would you recommend?


 

8 comments:

  1. I need to see this one someday. Our library doesn't have it. We checked this one out recently, though: http://www.amazon.com/Snow-Queen-Hans-Christian-Andersen/dp/0062209507 If you get a chance, check out the Faerie Tale Theatre version from the 1980s. It's on Hulu, and maybe even YouTube. Melissa Gilbert played Gerda, Lee Remick played the Snow Queen, and Lauren Hutton played the lady with the garden.

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    1. Thanks for the link! I will check it out! Oh I must see that movie! The cast is very interesting!

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  2. What a great book! Love Mary Engelbreight.

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    1. All her books are magical! They transport you into another world :)

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  3. I do not know Mary Engelbreit, but I know Hans Christian Andersen, he is from my country. Yes, and I love his adventures. he can be read by both children and adults. It is fine illustration.
    Hugs
    Wyrna

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    1. Hi Wyrna! I love his stories when I was a child and I still love them now! There are many books retelling his stories that it's difficult to choose which one to get! I prefer big picture books so I tend to buy them over other versions :)

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  4. this is one of my fav fairy tales and oh look at this book!! i'm a HUGE Mary E. fan and I've never seen this one!

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    1. It's totally gorgeous! It's a version you will love :)

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