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annepw's review against another edition
5.0
Strange, strange, strange, and somehow utterly transfixing. I was never bored reading this and I enjoyed recognizing the patterns in the stories. This book makes me want to do something with these stories, transform them in some way. That quality in a book is rare, that it actually makes me want to create.
beccastarling's review
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
A mixed bag, but definitely worth reading. There are about 12 fairy tales you might recognise, but the rest are totally unknown— some are delightful, some are shocking, some are boring, but as a whole, I am so glad I read this. Favourites include The Juniper Tree, the Goose Girl By the Pond, and the Three Sisters
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism, Cannibalism, Sexism, and Violence
2000ace's review
5.0
The original Grimm's Brothers fairy tales were a far cry from the Perrault collection of many of the same stories, the Green Fairy Book by Andrew Lang, or, God forbid, Walt Disney. The Brothers Grimm told stories with meat on their bones, where the good people were heroes and the bad people were really, really bad. The outcome of a particular story rose and fell on the consequences of the actions of the characters. The evil stepsisters in Cinderella, for example, did not go to the wedding of Cinderella and the Prince - no - their eyes were pecked out by crows.
Bruno Bettleheim had a theory that if children are reared hearing fairy tales and folk tales, they will develop a rich fantasy life while young, and won't need to turn to drugs and alcohol later on. I don't know if that is really the case, but I do know that the Grimm Brothers occupied an enormous space in my psyche as a child, along with Hans Christian Anderson and Carlo Collodi. No wonder children today love J.K. Rowling and Phillip Pulliam. Whatever else you think about their stories, their child heroes inhabit universes where actions are followed by consequences, and not all the good survive. Children are hungry for truth, and in books like Grimm's Fairy Tales, they find it.
Bruno Bettleheim had a theory that if children are reared hearing fairy tales and folk tales, they will develop a rich fantasy life while young, and won't need to turn to drugs and alcohol later on. I don't know if that is really the case, but I do know that the Grimm Brothers occupied an enormous space in my psyche as a child, along with Hans Christian Anderson and Carlo Collodi. No wonder children today love J.K. Rowling and Phillip Pulliam. Whatever else you think about their stories, their child heroes inhabit universes where actions are followed by consequences, and not all the good survive. Children are hungry for truth, and in books like Grimm's Fairy Tales, they find it.
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