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Title: Hansel and Gretel (Tell Me a Story) by M. Eulalia Valeri, Brothers Grimm, Conxita Rodriguez ISBN: 0-382-09072-1 Publisher: Silver Burdett Pr Pub. Date: July, 1985 Format: Hardcover List Price(USD): $4.95

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Average Customer Rating: 4 (2 reviews)

Rating: 5
Summary: Entertaining Book
Comment: First off, I really like the story of "Hansel and Gretel." It's one of the few fairy tales I remember reading when I was little. Recently, I wrote a paper on "Hansel and Gretel" and found that there is a lot of negativity surrounding it. Researchers object to the portrayal of women as cold-blooded killers and the father as weak and useless. In the story, the evil stepmother easily dominates her weak husband and forces him to go along with her scheme to abandon the children. It is believed that the Grimms included this in their story as a warning to men to watch out for domineering women. Another point scholars make is the fact that both the evil stepmother and wicked witch are both fatally punished for their treatment of Hansel and Gretel, but the father gets off scott free. In fact, the father is allowed to reap the benefits when his children return home with their arms filled with riches. Now, I don't fully agree with everything scholars have said about "Hansel and Gretel" because I found the story to be based somewhat on actual facts.
When the Grimms wrote this book, there had been many famines that wiped out entire villages. Also, women often died during childbirth, leaving the father to raise the kids on his own or remarry. The harsh conditions drove people to desperate measures and it was not uncommon for families to sacrifice a child or other loved one to ensure their own survival; especially stepmothers who were taking care of children that were not their own. I do agree that the story does not portray a normal, happy family but most fairy tales don't. On the other hand, I don't believe the Grimms' intention was to demean their characters, but to reveal the harsh realities of their time. In any case, "Hansel and Gretel" is still a good book, a classic fairy tale, and definitely worth a read.

Rating: 3
Summary: Chilling
Comment: My first note is that the editorial reviews attached to this book by Amazon seem to apply to a different illustrated volume of Hansel and Gretel, not the one illustrated by Monique Felix.

I ran across this on a search for the perfect edition of Hansel and Gretel. The illustrator does an excellent job, but her illustrations are far too frightening for young children. At times, Hansel and Gretel's eyes seem to glow, and the witch is horrifying... her long tangled hair has bones in it. You can almost hear shrieks and groans as you look at the pictures. I showed the picture to a friend of mine (a graphic artist), and she found it very disturbing.

I cannot give the book fewer than three stars, because it is so well done. But I cannot give it more than three, because I think it would scare the daylights out of young children. Granted, Hansel and Gretel is a scary story, but I remember coming across less frightening versions when I was a kid.