A Book of Ogres and Trolls

by Ruth Manning-Sanders, Robin Jacques (Illustrator)

This is an anthology of fairy tales from around the world that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. It is one in a long series of such anthologies by the author.

Table of Contents
Foreword
1. The Good Ogre (Russia)
2. Tritil, Litil, and the Birds (Ireland)
3. The Ogre's Breath (Sicily)
4. The Gold Knob (Iceland)
5. The Children on the Pillar (Russia)
6. Sigurd the King's Son (Iceland)
7. The Girl in the Basket (Italy)
8. Cow Bu-cola (Iceland)
9. The Green Bird (Sicily)
10. Jon and the Troll Wife (Iceland)
11. The Little Tailor and the Three Dogs (Germany)
12. The Troll's Little Daughter (Denmark)
13. Nils in the Forest (Denmark)

Genres: Fantasy, Childrens

127 pages, Library Binding

First published October 19, 1972

About the author

Ruth Manning-Sanders, youngest daughter of an English minister, describes her childhood as “extraordinarily happy. . . with kind and understanding parents and any amount of freedom.” She read omnivorously, and she and her two sisters wrote and acted their own plays. A Shakespeare scholar at Manchester University, she later married Cornish artist George Manning-Sanders. They began married life in a horse drawn caravan, and traveled to all parts of the British Isles.
Mrs. Manning-Sanders has collected folk and fairy stories from around the world and she published more than 90 books during her lifetime.

Reviews

[Mary Catelli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fairy tales about the world, with country sources (but no more) and nice illustrations, retold for children.

Fairy tales with ogres (mostly evil) and trolls (both good and evil) and even the only beneficent stepmother I've seen in fairy tales. The characters have to steal things back from them, or use their aid to deal with problems, or work for them and triumph.

[Chrissy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific 'story teller' type book with old world stories that kids love to hear over and over again. Definitely one to keep on the shelf for bed time stories.

[Emmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another delightful collection of ghoulish and amusing characters and monsters. While not the best, it's one of my favorites in the series so far.

My favorite stories included "The Good Ogre", "Tritil, Litil, and the Birds", and "Jon and the Troll Wife".

[Walt · Rating 3 out of 5]

The stories are interesting. Like most fairy tales for children, the most common theme was a poor, but honest, boy rescues a princess, marries her, and lives happily ever after. The stories are not that entertaining, some are ridiculously absurd even for children's fairy tales. However, the redeeming quality of the book is the different portrayal of ogres and trolls. Wherever Manning-Sanders found these stories, they do not fit the typical mold.

Unfortunately, Manning-Sanders does not disclose any history about the stories. Only a very brief introduction to book allows readers to identify the ethnic origin of most of the stories. I would really like to know more about the era these stories were written.

The cinematic stereotype of ogres and trolls are barely distinguishable. They are usually gigantic, stupid, cruel, and angry. Manning-Sanders discloses that many ogres in fairy tales follow this example; but some were surprisingly clever. Most of them possessed magical power to assist them in their havoc. In rare cases, they could be just, forgiving, and even helpful.

According to Manning-Sanders, trolls were almost universally small - like Keebler elves. They too possessed magic power. Most were mischievous; but they could be convinced to do good. They were feared, respected, and even accepted by people in the stories. It is surprising how many of the stories included the beneficial assistance of both ogres and trolls for the hero to win the princess.

Overall, this book offers weak stories. These are not fables. Children are unlikely to learn anything. The "hero" wins due to the magical intervention of others. Rarely, if ever, does the hero win because of his own skills. The redeeming quality of this book is to expose "real" ogres and trolls in the literary genre.

[Ashley Lambert-Maberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

All her books are splendid, I have no favourites really. The illustrations are perfectly suited, and I appreciate how she pulls her tales from several different cultures. I adored these as a child, and have read them to my children, and they hold up well.

(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)