The Emperor's New Clothes: An All-Star Illustrated Retelling of the Classic Fairy Tale - Softcover

Hans Christian Andersen

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0156010690 ISBN 13: 9780156010696

Publisher: Harcourt Brace & Company, 2000

Synopsis

Now available in a deluxe, affordable paperback and compact disc package comes the hip, hilarious retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's beloved fairy tale reimagined by an all-star cast. Each celebrity has created a character with a uniquely recognizable celebrity personality. And each character is lavishly illustrated by an acclaimed artist. The accompanying compact disc brings the story to life with music, sound effects, and all the humor and dramatic flair of the celebrity authors' finest performances-in a one-of-a-kind audio event for the entire family. And all this talent is for a unique charity-the Starbright Foundation. Royalties are donated to support this foundation dedicated to improving the lives of seriously ill children. The Starbright Foundation is working to change the face of childhood illness. By recognizing the link between a child's state of mind and the ability to recover from illness, Starbright creates products and programs that enable seriously ill children to confront the challenges they face every day. Starbright projects do more than educate or simply entertain, they address the core issues that accompany serious illness-the pain, fear, loneliness, and depression that can be as damaging as the sickness itself. The Starbright Foundation is best known for Starbright World, a private computer network connecting children from hospitals across the nation. Through this and other innovative combinations of technology, medicine, and entertainment, Starbright ensures that no child need sacrifice quality of life to an illness. For more information about the Starbright Foundation, please call (800) 315-2580 or visit the Starbright Web site at http://www.starbright.org.

About this title

Review:

Sure, you may know the story of The Emperor's New Clothes. But have you ever heard it from the point of view of the Emperor's underwear? Or from the Imperial Mirror? Or the honest boy's mother? An all-star cast retells and illustrates Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale about the foolish king who is too vain to admit he can't see his sumptuous new clothes, which, according to the dastardly weavers, can only be seen by "visionaries gifted with true taste and imagination." Twenty-three celebrities and 23 acclaimed illustrators donated their time and creativity to this project sponsored by the Starbright Foundation, which develops products and programs that enable seriously ill children to confront the mental and emotional challenges beyond their medical conditions. From Madonna to General H. Norman Schwarzkopf, from Robin Williams to Dr. Ruth Westheimer, these well-known personalities each take on a different perspective of the fairy tale, creating a riotous retelling that will have everyone in the family bent double with laughter (Calvin Klein himself tells the royal underwear's version of the story!). But that's not all. Award-winning artists like William Joyce (who did the cover), Chris Van Allsburg, Kinuko Y. Craft, Maurice Sendak, Quentin Blake, and S. Saelig Gallagher lend their imaginative skill to each chapter, depicting two dozen fabulous and unusual angles to the story. Winner of a 1999 Hans Christian Andersen Award, this amusing version of a classic will keep readers in stitches, as it were. The accompanying CD of this new paperback edition brings the story to vivid life. (Ages 8 to 108) --Emilie Coulter

From the Publisher:

In this hip, hilarious retelling, Hans Christian Andersen's beloved fairy tale is reimagined by an all-star celebrity cast. Among the writers are Academy Award-winning and -nominated actors and actresses and other personalities from the worlds of entertainment and popular culture. Each celebrity contribution is illustrated by artists who have created some of the most treasured classics of children's literature- Caldecott Medal and Honor winners, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonists, New Yorker cover contributors, and many other esteemed talents. The contributors' creative gifts are outshined only by their generosity: All of the royalties from this book have been donated to Starbright, an innovative charitable foundation committed to improving the lives of seriously ill children.

And on the enclosed compact disc, the book leaps into life- with music, sound effects, an original song, and all the humor and dramatic flair of the celebrity authors' finest performances- in a one-of-a-kind audio event for the entire family.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harcourt Brace & Company
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0156010690
• ISBN 13: 9780156010696
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 96