Read Me a Fairy Tale: A Child's Book of Classic Fairy Tales

A collection of stories retold to chase away the bedtime blues features "Cinderella," "Snow White," "Beauty and the Beast," and eleven other classic fairy tales sharpened with wit.

Grade 2-4-Impey breathes new life into 14 classics, retelling the stories in a fresh contemporary voice without sacrificing quality, beauty, or charm. The tales are written with cadence and humor, both tongue-in-cheek and broad (the "Sometimes Rude History of Tom Thumb" is just that), and are well suited for reading aloud or as a source for traditional storytelling. Included are such favorites as "The Frog Prince," "Cinderella," "Rapunzel," and "Jack in the Beanstalk." The format is appealing, with large, clear type and plenty of white space. Beck's delightful illustrations are well placed throughout, extend the stories effectively, and lend themselves to group sharing.
Donna L. Scanlon, Lancaster County Library, PA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Fourteen of the best-loved tales from the Grimms, Joseph Jacobs, Perrault, Andersen, et al., in a lively style that retains their basic structure and flavor and much of their language. Impey retells with great taste and sensitivity. Her graceful modifications almost always clarify; and rather than merely simplify or eliminate problematic passages, she comes up with new phrases as colorful and energetic as the earlier versions. Beck's illustrations--mostly head- and tailpieces and marginal vignettes--add a running visual commentary; their colors are bright and the crosshatched details expressive, but they are discreetly understated, quietly supplementing the text. An unusually attractive introduction to these basic tales, for reading aloud or alone. (Folklore. 6-12) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Gr. 3-6, younger for reading aloud. This is a solid collection of traditional tales retold in a slightly informal conversational style that lends itself to reading aloud. Impey includes 14 familiar favorites from childhood--"Cinderella," "Jack in the Beanstalk," and "Snow White" among them. With Beck's watercolors adding a nice cozy touch, the book has an old-fashioned, understated appeal that will make it a favorite for those looking for the one folk- and fairy-tale collection that has "everything" in it. Janice Del Negro