The Young Hans Christian Andersen - Hardcover

Hesse, Karen

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0439679907 ISBN 13: 9780439679909

Publisher: Scholastic Inc., 2005

Synopsis

Hans Christian Anderson was born in the slums of Odense, Denmark. His parents were hardworking, and Hans received little formal education, but his childhood was his opening to the world of folklore and fairy tales. Much of his work depicts characters who gain happiness in life after suffering and conflicts and many of his childhood experiences inspired his most famous tales, such as The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid. In this intimate and gripping biography of one of the world's greatest storytellers, Karen Hesse and acclaimed artist Erik Blegvad connect Hans's own experiences

About this title

About the Author

KAREN HESSE won the Newbery Medal for Out of the Dust, and was recently named a MacArthur Fellow. Ms. Hesse and Ms. Watson previously collaborated on the picture book, The Cats in Krasinski Square, whichreceived three starred reviews as well as numerous awards and Honours. She lives in Vermont with her husband.

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 2-4–Hesse uses evocative images and metaphors that parallel Andersen's own writing style to convey some of the formative childhood experiences that appear so poignantly in his fairy tales. Hans Christian was the ugly duckling, and his father was a steadfast soldier in Napoleon's army. When the boy's friendly overtures to a girl in his school were rejected, his grandmother knew how to melt the frost in his young heart. Andersen's youthful soaring soprano voice undoubtedly contributed to his story about the nightingale. Children who read this fairy-talelike biography, thankfully without invented dialogue, will gain compassion for the author and hopefully a sense of the similarities between his life and his work. Blegvad's bucolic illustrations of ponds, swans, and cottages are done in soft, warm, and sunny colors, and offer lovely images of Denmark in the early 1800s. Primary-grade children will enjoy reading this biography; for older readers who need more comprehensive information suggest Beth Wagner Brust's excellent The Amazing Paper Cuttings of Hans Christian Andersen (Houghton, 1994), which is not only rich in detail, but also indexed and well documented.–Kirsten Cutler, Sonoma Library, CA
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About this edition

• Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 0439679907
• ISBN 13: 9780439679909
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 48
• Illustrator: Blegvad Erik