Tales From Grimm

Tales From Grimm. ISBN 0-8166-4936-7. Wanda Gag. 1936. Newbery Honor. Ages 9-12. Caucasian.

Tales from Grimm is composed of many fairy-tales and folk stories that teach some sort of life lesson. The idea that things aren't always what they appear to be is present in "Hansel and Gretel", "The Frog Prince", and "Snow White and Rose Red", with characters in these stories being rewarded for showing kindness to creatures that either transform into more desirable human friends or help them out in the midst of a predicament in the end. "Cat and Mouse Keep House" teaches the tough lesson that not everything is fair, and not everyone is to be trusted. "The Fisherman and His Wife" warns of the dangers of greed. Often in these stories we find characters that mean to do the protagonist harm for their own enjoyment. The witch in "Hansel and Gretel", the witch in ""Rapunzel, and the dragon in "The Dragon and His Grandmother" are all examples of these sort of characters. These folk tales do not always turn out as the reader expects, and are not sugar-coated by any means, but they all teach valuable lessons in a whimsical, fun way.

The illustrations in this book help tell the many stories well. The black and white sketches add a visual guide to what is being read, but in a sort of refined way. They are not found on every page. Someone could easily make caricatures to go along with these stories, but the illustrations in this book are not that sort of picture. They portray what is happening in each story by just showing a black and white sketch of a scene or character, which allows the reader to use their own imagination to fill in the rest.

This book would easily capture the attention of children at many age levels, through junior high. When reading to a class, after each story, questions should be posed as to why the students think the characters acted in certain ways, and what they think the moral of each story is. It would be fun to allow the students to create their own drawings to accompany these stories, as there are many unique, and sometimes mystical, characters and settings throughout this book.