The Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales

The Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales

Translations from the Grimms' Kinder und Hausmarchen by Edgar Taylor and Marian Edwardes

★★★★☆

Most people know many of the Grimm Fairy Tales without ever reading the book. We are all raised on Disney recreations of the stories, but I wanted to read the originals and I’m so glad I did. This collection includes all the classic tales along with dozens more I’d never heard of before. I was surprised by how short some of the stories are and how much darker the tone of the whole book is. Some of the stories are pretty weird.

There are a few major themes throughout the book. Stepmothers and stepdaughter are big, they always hate each other. It’s not surprising to see that the animosity associated with those titles is still around today. Each story with step family includes a lot of resentment and dislike. There’s also a lot of changing people into things, flowers, ducks, frogs, etc. to disguise themselves or as a punishment.

Some of the tales are familiar and it’s not a surprise that they made great children’s movies. Others are incredible odd and will probably never make it to the big screen.

For example:

“Once upon a time, a mouse, a bird, and a sausage, entered into partnership and set up house together.”

I’m sorry do you mean a pig or a sausage? Oh, you mean a sausage, okay. So how does this sausage contribute to the household chores you might ask, well he rolls himself around in some vegetables to flavor the soup. Anyone else think that sounds weird? Spoiler alert, the sausage gets eaten.

There are also some interesting differences between the original versions of the stories and the versions that are well-know. It’s actually Ashputtel not Cinderella and it’s Little Red-Cap, not Little Red Riding Hood and it’s not Snow White, it’s Snowdrop. Those are small changes, but interesting ones.

“And so the little girl really did grow up; her skin was as white as snow, her cheeks as rosy as the blood, and her hair as black as ebony; and she was called Snowdrop.”

I liked reading The Robber Bridegroom, a particularly dark tale of a betrothed young girl realizing her fiancé is a cannibal and a murderer. It’s the tale that inspired Margaret Atwood’s novel The Robber Bride and I’ve been curious about it since reading that Atwood novel. Another odd one is called “The Juniper-Tree.” In it a mother cooks her son into a pudding and serves him to her husband. It reminded me a bit of Shakespeare’s Titus Andronicus.

One of the creepiest tales is “Cat-Skin.” In it a king’s wife dies and when his daughter comes of age he decides she looks just like her mother and so he will marry her. Everyone in the kingdom, daughter included, said a collective “Ewww.” So the daughter tries to come up with ways to postpone the disturbing nuptials.

I loved the story of Snow-White and Rose-Red. I grew up reading about their lives with a local bear and angry dwarf and I’m actually surprised it was never made into a movie.

BOTTOM LINE: So interesting to read and see how these stories have evolved over the years. They are dark and really not great for little kids, but I loved reading them. They reminded me of some of Neil Gaiman’s books (especially Coraline and The Ocean at the End of the Lane). You can see how current authors could be inspired by these earl y creepy stories. Aesop’s Fables were all about morality and teaching lessons, while the Grimm brothers told scary tales disguised them as bedtime stories.

Did any of you watch Faerie Tale Theatre when you were growing up? I loved that show and I couldn’t believe how closely the TV show matched the original Grimm versions.

About the Authors (from the book): The Brothers Grimm, Jacob (1785-1863) and Wilhelm (1786-1859), were born in Hanau, near Frankfurt, in the German state of Hesse. Throughout their lives they remained close friends, and both studied law at Marburg University. Jacob was a pioneer in the study of German philology, and although Wilhelm's work was hampered by poor health the brothers collaborated in the creation of a German dictionary, not completed until a century after their deaths.

2012 TBR Pile Challenge Completed

I completed the 2012 TBR Pile Challenge! I’m so proud of myself, because these are all books that I’ve been meaning to read for a LONG time and I finally got to them! Thanks to Adam at the Roof Beam Reader for hosting the challenge and encouraging me to pick up these long neglected titles. I read 11 books from my original list and one of the alternates, a total of twelve books.

Here is my complete list, including the month I read them and links to all of my reviews.

1) Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (finished March 2012)

2) The Loved One by Evelyn Waugh (finished April 2012)

3) Raise High The Roof Beam, Carpenters by J.D. Salinger (finished June 2012)

4) Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency by Douglas Adams (finished July 2012)

5) Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss (finished April 2012)

6) Bleak House by Charles Dickens (finished March 2012)

7) Silver on the Tree by Susan Cooper (finished January 2012)

8) The Robber Bride by Margaret Atwood (finished September 2012)

9) Affinity by Sarah Waters (finished September 2012)

10) The Quiet American by Graham Greene

11) The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy (finished May 2012)

12) Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson (finished February 2012)

ALTERNATES:

1) Nobody's Fool by Richard Russo

2) That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis (finished July 2012)

Image form here.

Margaret Atwood, The Robber Bride and a Giveaway

Last week I got to see Margaret Atwood speak as part of the Butler University Vivian S. Delbrook Visiting Writers Series. Yes, it was just as incredible as you all think it was. She is so witty and hilarious, while at the same time offering sharp, thoughtful insights about the world around her. She has a quiet droll tone and so her quick barbs surprise you at first.

She gave a three-part speech about the future, the difficulties in writing about it and her own experience writing about it. It was fascinating! I don’t think I can quite express how much I enjoyed the talk and getting to meet her in person. Atwood was all that I thought she might be and more. I wish I could just sit and talk with her over a cup of coffee for hours.

According to Atwood:

The outfits the handmaids wear were inspired by the outfit worn by the girl on the Old Dutch Cleaner bottles. Who knew?

She once saw a performance of Macbeth where his head was “played” by a cabbage in the death scene and it bounced about off the stage because they’d gotten one that was too fresh.

“There are writers and there are readers and then there is everything in between. Let’s call it two cans and a string.”

“On the web, that modern day equivalent of consulting an oracle, because you never know if what you find will be true or not...”

After giving her talk Atwood stayed and signed copies of her books. I was lucky enough to get my well-worn copy of The Handmaid’s Tale signed for myself, but I also took a copy of The Robber Bride, (see review below) and got it signed for one of you! I had Atwood make it out to “An Avid Reader” and I’m excited to now open the giveaway for the signed copy!

**UPDATE: Jenners is the winner of the signed copy. If I don't hear back from her within 24 hours I'll pick another winner. Thanks!**

To enter the giveaway please do the following:
1)      Tell me why you love Atwood’s work or why you’re excited to check it out.
2)       Leave your email in the comment as well so I can contact you.
3)      Tweet about the giveaway for an extra entry (leave a comment saying you tweeted).
 
The contest will be open until September 26, 2012. Good luck!

The Robber Bride
by Margaret Atwood
★★★★

I have been thrilled to find that each of my reading experiences with Atwood’s books has been completely unique and this one is no exception. Reading each of her novels has been fulfilling in a different way. The Handmaid’s Tale is a big picture look at a possible dystopian future and it makes you think about the role women currently play in society and how that role has changed throughout history. The Blind Assassin is an intricately built plot combining a sci-fi story and a mystery that comes full circle in an incredibly rewarding way. The Penelopiad takes a well-known Greek saga and tells it from a new perspective. Oryx and Crake is a post-apocalyptic break down of society. Whatever people say about Atwood, they can never call her boring.

For me, The Robber Bride holds perfectly true to my past experiences with Atwood. I’ve learned to expect the unexpected. I never know where her books are going to take me and this one surprised me with its simplicity. On the surface it has the most basic of plots: the thin line between jealousy and friendship in the relationships between women. The premise: a beautiful woman named Zenia has destroyed the lives of three women and now she’s returned to wreak havoc again.

The plot revolving around Zenia is technically the thread that holds the story together, but to me it was the least interesting part of the book. Atwood does an excellent job making us care for those characters before we become frustrated with them, but I still wasn’t a big fan of the manipulative evil woman vs. the pathetic and gullible woman premise.

The reason I enjoyed this one was not because of the actual plot. I thought the scenes with Zenia were the weakest aspect of the story. Instead, I loved the character development of the three main women; Charis, Tony and Roz. They are so different, yet men seem to be their one unifying weakness. Atwood presents the characters to us and just when we think we know them, she pulls back layer after layer in their history and we being to understand just how little we knew from our first impressions. None of them are simple or can be boiled down to a generic stereotype. They are all unique and complex and it’s a testament to Atwood’s skill as a writer that she can make us care so deeply about characters, while at the same time being frustrated with their choices.

BOTTOM LINE: Atwood is just brilliant. This isn’t my favorite of her books (it’s The Handmaid’s Tale if you’re curious), but it’s still a solid one and the characters will stay with me for a long time.

Photos by moi.