Reviews

The Snow Queen by Amy Ehrlich, Susan Jeffers, Hans Christian Andersen

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vendea's review against another edition

5.0

For a very long time (well, not that long, but I was a child and time in general seemed long) this was the book that I considered my favorite. I think I read it five times in a row when I first got it.

supplantedbearer's review against another edition

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2.0

Would Hans Christian Andersen have benefitted from the intervention of some Disney script doctors? Look, maybe. I certainly prefer the core metaphor of Frozen (the triumph of womanhood and sisterly love over patriarchal violence) to the metaphor here, which seems to be the vanquishing of paganism by Christian purity. Yikes.

I actually listened to this while travelling in Sweden, which was nicely serendipitous, though it made the story's outdated and culturally-insensitive use of the term "Lapp" all the more uncomfortable.

gabmc's review against another edition

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4.0

I can't believe I've never read this book before. I didn't even have a good idea of the story. At its heart it's a story about good and evil, told in seven chapters, featuring a young girl, Gerda, and her friend Kay. The first chapter is about an evil goblin who smashes a mirror into fragments so tiny that they can find their way into people's eyes and hearts. The mirror reversed how things looked - so anything beautiful looked ugly and anything ugly was magnified. We meet Gerda and her friend Kay in chapter two. Unfortunately, Kay gets tiny fragments of the mirror into his eye and heart. He eventually runs off to join the Snow Queen in her ice palace - his heart has turned to ice so he can't see anything wrong with the Snow Queen (and she is definitely no Elsa!). Gerda hunts for Kay and goes through several hurdles and meets some interesting characters, including a witch who imprisons her into a beautiful garden with talking flowers; a prince, princess and their talking crows; a family of robbers; a Lapp woman and a Finn woman before finally reaching the palace of the Snow Queen.

geekwayne's review against another edition

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4.0

'The Snow Queen' by Hans Christian Anderson is a re-release with beautiful pictures by Sanna Annukka and translated by Jean Hersholt. The illustrations are beautiful, as is the story, although it is dark.

Supposedly the movie "Frozen" is based on this book, but you'd be hard pressed to see much comparison at all. What you have instead are a series of seven linked stories. There is an evil broken mirror that sends glass splinters into hearts. It's also the story of Kay and Gerda. Kay who is taken away the Snow Queen and Gerda who never gives up looking for him.

Throughout the books are beautiful drawings by Sanna Annukka, whose work is made up of geometric shapes and bright colors. The visuals make this a book you would want to leave out and show off. The story is a classic, just don't expect a Disney version of things.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Ten Speed Press and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

geekwayne's review against another edition

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4.0

'The Snow Queen' by Hans Christian Anderson, translated by Misha Hoekstra, with art by Lucie Arnoux is similar to another translation I very recently reviewed, but while that one was more of an art piece, this is the one I'd want to read to a child.

The book is comprised of seven short chapters or stories. They are all linked, so I prefer chapters. The Devil has made a special mirror. It breaks and scatters aroudn the world. If the shards get in you, you don't see beautiful things, you see dark things. Little Kai and Gerda are very good friends and nothing can separate them until Kai gets a splinter of mirror in his eye. From then on, he isn't a very nice boy and sees ugliness in the world around him. He is taken away by the Snow Queen, and Gerda goes looking for him. She has adventures talking to crows and with a bandit girl. Will she ever find Kai and can they be reunited?

Each chapter has one pen and ink illustration. They are good illustrations. The story is a really readable translation. It reads like a good fairytale and this was missing in the other version I recently read. Translation can make all the difference. It may be that the other translation is more authentic, but, for me, this is more readable.

I received a review copy of this ebook from Pushkin Children's Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.

bergerreadsbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes

3.25

this fairytale is so so so quick and so wholesome. and it’s so cool that frozen is loosely based on this! i enjoyed this book, it made me feel like a little kid again!