Winter's Tales

by Isak Dinesen, Karen Blixen

Eleven short stories:
The Sailor-Boy's Tale
The Young Man with the Carnation
The Pearls
The Invincible Slave-Owners
The Heroine
The Dreaming Child
Alkmene
The Fish
Peter & Rosa
Sorrow-Acre
A Consolatory Tale

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Classics, Denmark, Danish, Scandinavian Literature, Literature

287 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1942

About the author

Pseudonym used by the Danish author Karen Blixen.

Baroness Karen von Blixen-Finecke (Danish: [kʰɑːɑn ˈb̥leɡ̊sn̩]), born Karen Christentze Dinesen, was a Danish author, also known by the pen name Isak Dinesen, who wrote works in Danish, French and English. She also at times used the pen names Tania Blixen, Osceola, and Pierre Andrézel.

Blixen is best known for Out of Africa, an account of her life while living in Kenya, and for one of her stories, "Babette's Feast," both of which have been adapted into Academy Award-winning motion pictures. She is also noted for her Seven Gothic Tales, particularly in Denmark.

(wikipedia)

Reviews

[Rowena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think short story collections are often a bit hit or miss, but I enjoyed every single story in this collection. I think it was C.S. Lewis who said that one day we'll be old enough to read fairytales again, and I think that's definitely true for me now. These stories definitely had a fairytale-like quality to them and they were very enjoyable; not only were her descriptions of the Scandinavian region inviting, there was also a lot of wisdom to her words. The writing was also infused with biblical language and as found her writing to be deep yet light. Apparently "Out of Africa" showcases Dinesen's/Blixen's writing a lot better so I know I'm in for a treat.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another book that had been sitting on my Kindle for a while, and where I can’t remember why I downloaded it. Possibly it was because the title suggested it might be suitable to read now that the long nights are here for those of us who live in northern latitudes. It’s a collection of 11 short stories, most of which are set in the 19th century, or earlier. I haven’t previously read anything by Karen Blixen, and I believe this collection is considered a minor part of her oeuvre. In terms of her writing style, I was struck by her very elaborate descriptions.

The first story, The Sailor Boy’s Tale, turned out to contain lots of fantastical elements, and resembled an ancient myth. That was OK for me. I have been known to read ancient myths, though I probably prefer them when they are ancient. I really enjoyed the next entry, The Young Man with the Carnation, in which a young man’s destiny turns on a misunderstanding. I was though left bewildered by the third story, The Pearls. I simply couldn’t understand the motivation and behaviours of the main character. I related only a little better to the next, The Invincible Slave Owners.

I liked The Heroine, a thoughtful piece set during the Franco-German War of 1870-71, which reminded me a lot of Maupassant’s stories set during that conflict. An English student finds himself caught up with a group of French people accused of spying by the German military, and the actions of the eponymous heroine will determine their fate. The GR blurb suggests that this book was published in 1942, during which time Denmark was occupied by Nazi Germany. It seems fairly clear that The Heroine was really a story about Denmark in 1942. I also wondered whether this was partly the case with Sorrow-Acre, a story set in the 18th century, and which is centred around the treatment of a peasant family by a local nobleman. In my opinion, this is the best story in the collection.

Mosty of the stories in the second half of the collection concern family relationships. Both The Dreaming Child and Alkmene feature children who are adopted into middle class families. Both children seem detached, even other-worldly, and to some extent this is also true of the characters (and not just the title characters) in Peter and Rosa, a tale about two teenagers who live in the same house. Rosa is the biological daughter of a local parson. Peter is described as Rosa’s cousin, but there is also a suggestion that he was actually a foundling.

A number of the stories contained various pseudo-philosophical ramblings, and this was particularly noticeable in both The Fish, and in A Consolatory Tale. Neither did much for me. The Fish, set in medieval Denmark, was another story with magical/folkloric elements.

I can see why people might love this collection, but I was perplexed by many of the stories, and found I couldn’t relate to most of them.

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went to Denmark, pretty much, to see Karen Blixen's home. It is a beautiful place; the land around the house, including Blixen's grave, has been made into a bird santucary. The house is near the water, and at least when I went there, the walk from the train station included passing what looked to be a Nor. Fjord breeding farm. There was even a resturant with Blixen inspired art work (pricey but very nice) and excellent food.

It seems strange that when reading Blixen's non-fiction what comes across is her love for her farm in Africa, yet reading her fiction what comes across is her love for Denmark and its history. This dual love is actually reflected in her house, with its Africa interior yet its Danish exterior.

In many ways, too, the stories in this volume remind me of that house. Take for instance, "Sorrow Acre", the story that I always like the most in this volume ("The Cloak" is her best story, at least to me). The story tells of a mother's desperate attempt to save her son, yet juxaposes this with a relationship between the old lord, his wife, and his nephew, Adam. The story not only calls to mind the Danish landscape, but also Danish history for Adam had been away on a mission involving the punishment of Queen Caroline Mathlide. The Queen, wife of the insane Christian VII, had an affair with her husband's physican Johann Friedrich Struensee, some time after she gave birth to the heir. The two lovers ruled for a brief period (she has queen, he as prime minster) during which Caroline gave birth to a daughter. They lost power to Christian VII's step-mother. Struensee was execuated, and Caroline was imprisoned in Helsingor (Elisnore) castle, in what is best described as a cell before she was sent into exile in Hanover. She never saw either of her children after her imprisonment. This whole story hangs over Blixen's story and its theme of youth versus age, for the Queen and her lover were more popular than the step-mother, at least with the common people.

What also flows though these stories is the theme of the influence of art and sailoring. There are stories that resemble fairy tales, a Charles Dickens wanders though two of the stories. But there is also a sense of loss, especially in the two stories that deal with children, in particular "The Dreaming Child" and its question of who extactly is dreaming - the child, the wife or the reader? Blixen suffered a miscarriage at one point during her time on her farm (the child was Denys Finch-Hatton's). A reader has to wonder if these stories, written years after her experience expressed in some way her desire for a child. (Is the power of the wives and the weakness of the hubands a comment on her marriage?)

Perhaps it is this question that makes Blixen one of the more honest writers. At times her stories don't seem to be going anywhere, then suddenly, like much in life, something happens, a small event becomes large, something changes and the meaning becomes clear. The stories are small studies in art, the soul, the craft, and love.

[Kuszma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tényleg mintha téli estékre találták volna ki. Szinte látom is: csikorgó hideg a dán lankákon, a tehenek is egymáshoz bújva állnak, hogy némi meleget nyerjenek. Az udvarház ablaka viszont világít, és kiáltást hallunk:
- Gyerekek! Gyertek! Blixen mama mesét mesél!
És akkor jön az árva, aki arról álmodik, hogy valójában egy őrgróf gyermeke. A fiú, aki szökni készül: holnap talán matróznak áll. Jön a jólelkű lelkész, a hajóskapitány, a földbirtokos, az elszegényedett úrilány, a tépelődő író, az öreg király és még öregebb szolgája, a hallgatag szerelmes, be se férnek mind a szobába, a szerelmes kénytelen a küszöbre leülni, de nem is baj, így legalább nem látja senki, ha könny futja el a szemét. És mind hallgatják Blixen egyszerű, ómódi, szép történeteit.

[Neal Adolph · Rating 3 out of 5]

In January of 2016 my life was changing. I had just begun my final contract extension at work and had just decided to move to Colombia to study Spanish in May, after my contract had run its course. I had recently finished reading a wonderful collection of short stories by the great contemporary master of the form, Alice Munro, and was in need of another. So, here I was, my life in a moment of change, and my next several months predetermined to be very busy, and me without a collection of short stories to read in those brief moments of reprieve from the rush of moving across countries. And, as I am not intending on coming home for Christmas this year, I also knew that the winter of 2015/2016 would be my last winter for at least one more rotation around the sun. In celebration of this great season, the one that turns some Canadians into recluses and others into adventurers of the white world, I grabbed Isak Dinesen’s Winter Tales from my bookshelf.

It turned out, for reasons which I do not completely understand, that the winter of 2015/2016 would be unusually frail in Saskatchewan. Very little snow fell from the sky, and the mercury rarely dropped below -20C. For a Canadian,a prairie boy, who revels in snow and in cold, in snowshoeing and cross country skiing, this was a tragic development. Unlike many of my friends I was cursing El Nino for taking away that sacredly Canadian season.

It turned out, for reasons which I do not completely understand, that this collection of short stories was also unusually frail and, like the season in which it was read, often disappointing.

Isak Dinesen is one of those names which sometimes pops up as a missed opportunity for the Nobel Committee to award a woman who was certainly deserving and so, having some regard of the prize and believing that it often awards (or almost awards) many writers who are remarkably talented, I came to this collection expecting something really quite astounding. And, at times, that is what I found. Dinesen is a very good writer, particularly because of her description of the natural world in which her stories are set. There were many times where I was impressed by her words, her poetry, the ways in which she described waves, or lakes, or woods. It was, often, simply lovely, and it is for these descriptions that I decided to keep the collection for some further research into her writing.

The stories, on the other hand, are generally weakened by a poor sense of direction. I suppose that this can be attributed to the style which Dinesen is attempting to mimic. Her stories are mostly set in the late 19th century, that period when Europe hadn’t been afflicted by the scourge of total war, and so the stories lilt through an innocence and sense of direction similar to many of the more romantic works which were coming out at the time. For moments I felt like I was watching a period movie but transferred to a period story collection: I felt like I was reading some contemporary of Oscar Wilde or Edgar Allen Poe or some less accomplished student of Trollope or Dickens, a writer who was raised in that same notion of high class humanity and notions of chivalry (I hesitate to say either George Elliot or Jane Austen for reasons related to the quality of the craft on display here - both Elliot and Austen are quite a bit more careful with their writing than Dinesen was in this collection). In my reading, I tend to avoid too many authors who have such unrelatable notions of humanity and charity. This made connecting to the characters here difficult.

Which isn’t to say that I didn’t connect to the characters or nearly appreciate the stories as they were. Each one contained something that I enjoyed and maybe even adored, but each one took whatever theme or character trait I was connecting to and decided to throw it out the window. False starts followed false starts in this collection. Indeed, if you read my updates from reading this collection, I often noted this frustration. In almost every story I wanted something very different than what I got and I couldn’t figure out why.Too often, after completing a story, I found myself wondering “So what? Why did I read this story? What was I supposed to get out of it?” and came away with empty answers. Again, I wonder if it is because I couldn’t connect with the ideas of class, gender, romance, and Christianity which were being presented here, and would struggle to say that her descriptions of nature were in and of themselves any true discussion of man’s relation to nature. They were merely set pieces, some kind of pathos.

The collection improves with the final few stories, and there are one, two, or three that I would even recommend (The Young Man with the Carnation, The Pearls, The Fish, and A Consolatory Tale come to mind). And ultimately the themes settle down a bit into something a bit more consistent and predictable. Here you have stories which are attempting to make sense of family - particularly of the relationship between child and parents. In some cases the child is biological, and in many others the child is adopted. This is pleasant enough, I suppose, but ultimately, often, quite boring.

All of this made rating this collection quite difficult, and I decided on the default of a three out of five stars because I wanted to generously recognize the writing talent on display here. It is a hard three though, and at times bordered on a two rather than a three. This is in contrast with the threes I have recently assigned to Petals of Blood by Ngugi wa Thiong’o and Memoirs of Hadrian by Marguerite Yourcenar, both of which struggled with that fourth star.

Which makes me wonder if I will read Isak Dinesen again in the future. Perhaps I’ll chase down the two books which are widely regarded as her masterpieces (Seven Gothic Tales and Out of Africa) and give them a solid shake or two, but this is only because I have discovered that this collection is one of her minor works and largely regarded as a rare misstep by an otherwise impeccable author. But I won’t rush to do so. Perhaps one day, in one future January, I’ll pick it up and give it a go.

As a side note, I never know whether to call Dinesen by her actual name, Karen Blixen, or by the pseudonym which is on the cover of this book (but, on my copy of Out of Africa, is followed, in parenthesis, by Karen Blixen). Pseudonyms make life hard. Remember that Elena Ferrante.

As a second side note, it is worth noting that so many of these stories feel as though they are missing a good, strong, threatening winter of the sort that you find in Canada more often than not. The ones where the air hurts your lungs when you breath in too deeply, or when, while walking, you try to balance the needs of the body to stay warm and the danger of having sweat accumulate and freeze to your skin. I suppose the Old World has it so much easier.

[El Bibliófilo · Rating 5 out of 5]

My comments in video: https://youtu.be/vzZV7VNNI08

Why didn't they give her the Nobel Prize?
I am surprised that the Danish writer has not been awarded with the prize, since she has a great narrative capacity, enveloping, suggestive and of great depth; So much so that I found evocation in each one of her stories with some work by winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature. Maybe it's that while I read, I keep in my memory what I read and I think I see references everywhere (almost a paranoid mania), or maybe the great writer has powerful stories, Nobel stories.
I hope you leave me your comments to confirm that I am a maniac or to join in the surprise of not finding this author as an award-winning.
Greetings

¿Por qué no le dieron el Premio Nobel?
Me sorprende que la escritora danesa no haya sido galardonada con el premio, pues posee una gran capacidad narrativa, envolvente, sugestiva y de gran profundidad; tanto que encontré evocación en cada uno de sus cuentos con alguna obra de ganadores del premio nobel de literatura. Tal vez sea que mientras leo, conservo en mi memoria lo que leo y creo ver referencias por todo lado (casi una manía paranoica), o tal vez, la gran escritora posee cuentos poderosos, cuentos nobel.
Ojalá me dejen sus comentarios para corroborar que soy un maniático o para sumarse ustedes a la sorpresa de no encontrar a esta autora premiada.
Saludos

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guess the best word for these stories would be haunting. They are by turns beautiful, striking, spiritual, or tragic. Some of the people inhabiting these pages remind me of characters from a fairy tale, a Maupassant story, or a Russian novel. And of course the Danish landscape and climate leave their imprint too. One detail that struck me was that in three of the stories, a fox stops and looks at a traveler before moving on, with varying amounts of notice and commentary by the traveler; it makes me wish Dinesen had written one short tale from the point of view of the fox.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a word - magic!
11 short stories which draw you in quickly - Dinesen has a gift for sparking interest in her characters from the outset and for pulling you into another world... and making you linger there long after the tale is over. *Sigh*
Most of the stories are set in the author's native land (Denmark) sometime in the past (frequently the 19th century, though one story takes us as far back as the 13th). Dinesen's nostalgia for her country and its people can be felt strongly, which is part of the spell of these tales. More charm lies in the folk-tale quality of many tales, both in the events recounted and in their unfolding.
Each of the tales reads well in isolation but there is a unity of theme in the collection - one biographer sums up the whole in the notion of 'longing' and I would add that the various protagonists' reaction to longing (particularly wrestling with forces which oppress) is a much explored element throughout.
My favourite rite story? "Peter and Rosa" is a beautiful, sensitive narrative about two young people whose worlds - inner and outer - are opening up, but also coming together in an unexpected and unforgettable way....
A must-read set of stories for Dinesen enthusiasts - both for their own sake, but also for their status as the author's own favourite.

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Halfway through the "The Heroine"(about french ex-pats imprisoned during a 19th century conflict between France and Germany) I realized these stories were written in Nazi occupied Denmark. And then I realized the chill of history blew through these intricate tales especially the harrowing "Sorrow Acre", but these stories are surprising and unpredictable rather than bleak ruminations from Dineson's strange erudite mind. These resemble short stories or tales(10-20 pages)more so than the dense novellas of "Seven Gothic Tales", they offer similiar reflections on identity, defiance, story telling, and history all set in the fantasia that she makes out of 19th century Europe, but while nothing is amazing as "The Monkey" or "The Dreamers" here, but some like "Sorrow Acre" come close.

[Jennie Rogers · Rating 5 out of 5]

A magical short story collection - Dinesen grasps the undercurrents running through situations, settings and characters (in a very Anais Nin like manner) in a beautiful, intuitive style. Reading more of her soon.

[Sarah Mac · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. I plodded through 3 stories before throwing in the towel.

Several years ago I read this author's full-length pastiche 'The Angelic Avengers' & enjoyed it, but these shorts were interminable. Endless religious & philosophical yodeling, endless metaphors, endless weighty clouds of DOOM hanging over an endless cast of disaffected malcontents who sit around thinking about the misery of humanity. In short: I found these too depressing to enjoy for the language & too wordy to be immersive tales of incident.

This is the sort of fiction I just don't enjoy anymore. Reality is hard enough; I don't want to spend my reading time with talking heads who serve no purpose but to further illuminate the suffering of mankind & then shrug it off as "Well, such is human experience! Lol!"

NOPE. Not for me.

[Pamela Shropshire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Isak Dinesen was one of the pen names of Karen Blixen, best known as the author of the autobiographical Out of Africa which was, of course, made into the classic movie by the same name starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. This short story collection is very different.

The writing is exquisite; the stories are both fantastical and grounded. I know virtually nothing about Denmark, but the descriptions are so vivid I feel almost as if I had been seeing the country. It would be difficult to choose a favorite story; there were none that I didn’t enjoy. If pressed to choose, I think I’d have to pick Sorrow-acre and Peter and Rosa, both of which had sad endings.

I will definitely be looking for more of her works.

[Erasmia Kritikou · Rating 3 out of 5]

Όπως το λένε τα 3 αστερακια του gd: liked it.

Ισως, αν υπηρχε 3,5 να του εδινα κι αλλο μισο, γιατι νομιζω οτι αυτες οι ιστορίες ειχαν κατι να πουν, κάποιες τουλάχιστον.
Μου αρεσε το εντονο λογοτεχνικό και φιλοσοφικο στοιχειο που εμπεριειχαν - η αναζητηση ακομη για την αληθεια του Θεου και η περιπλανηση, ως εννοια, σε πελαγα και καμπους, ειχε εντονες οπτικοακουστικές εικονες, κι ενα ευχαριστο στοιχειο παραμυθιου να ιπταται πανω απ ολα τα διηγηματακια.
Μου θυμισε να χει παρει μια πρεζα Αντερσεν, εδωσε την Σκανδιναβικη πνοη της και το θαλασσοπορο της, το ναυτικό της και το wanderlust ως κεντρο της Ευρωπης, κι ως απογονος Βικιγκ.
Γενικά, μας ταξιδεψε, που λενε.

Αυτο που δεν μ' αρεσε ηταν ότι κάποιες ιστοριες ενιωσα οτι δε με πηγαν πουθενά,
κι αυτο που καθολου μα καθολου δεν μ' αρεσε ηταν η κακη μεταφραση και η μηδαμινη επιμελεια με τα χιλια ορθογραφικά λάθη και καποια συντακτικά που δεν με αφηναν να χαρώ τις αφηγησεις της Μπλιξεν.
Κι ετσι, συνολικά το βιβλιο μου φανηκε καπως "λιγο"

Περισσότερο μου άρεσε το πρωτο διήγημα, με το αγορι ναυτικό, ηταν πολυ παραμυθενιο και μπλέ απ ολη τη θάλασσα και την μελαγχολική διάθεση των εκπατρισμένων.

Θα ξαναδιάβαζα Μπλίξεν, και μαλιστα μολις μου ηρθε η παραγγελια απ το Μεταιχμιο με το Περα απο την Αφρική - το οποιο το βρηκα για 2,80Ε ετσι; μια που εκοψα το καπνισμα, μου αγοραζω βιβλια αντι για πακετα τσιγαρα για δωρο <3



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"Αυτοί που ταξιδευουν για ψυχαγωγία όταν η θαλασσα είναι ήρεμη και χαμογελαστή κι υστερα λένε πως την αγαπουν δεν έχουν ιδεα τι παει να πει αγάπη. Μονο οι ναυτικοι που έχουν θαλασσοδαρθει και την έχουν καταραστεί και βλαστημησει είναι οι πραγματικοί εραστές της"

[Ilaria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Undici racconti lunghi, ambientati per lo più nelle lontane terre del Nord. Lo stile di scrittura è molto bello, con descrizioni di paesaggi dettagliate e suggestive, tipiche dei romanzi dell' '800. Le atmosfere sono malinconiche, magiche, surreali, cupe, una lettura che porta all' evasione ed a viaggiare nel tempo. Talvolta forse ho trovato questi racconti troppo surreali e lontani da me, soprattutto perché sono tutti intrisi di una morale non sempre facile da interpretare, legata anche alla cultura religiosa del tempo.

[Cynda · Rating 4 out of 5]

When reading The Winter's Tale by William Shakespeare, I learned something of what a winter's tale is: Stories told and plays enacted at winter celebrations for the enjoyment of old women and small children. The wisdom appealed to the old women and the fantasticality of the stories appeals to children. The stories would lend themselves as conversation starters about the nature of life and wisdom.

After reading Babette’s Feast also by Isak Dinesen, I hoped to read something just as fantastical. These stories are not as fantastical but definitely good, good enough that I generally read one long short story a day in order for me to ponder on the nature of the stories.

All these stories would make a good movie more towards art.

[Fabio · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Il sottile nastro grigio di una strada che serpeggiava lungo la pianura e su e giù per i colli era la materializzazione concreta del desiderio umano, e dell'umana certezza, che è meglio stare in un posto anziché in un altro"
- Il campo del dolore -

Non la perfezione, e non uno stile che mi riesca particolarmente gradito, quello dei racconti di Karen Blixen, ma in alcuni casi non posso negare di essere rimasto colpito. Sarò in un periodo "svenevole", ma Gli invincibili padroni di schiavi, Alkmene e soprattutto Peter e Rosa mi hanno causato un fremito d'emozione. E pregi ( di altro genere ) ho riscontrato anche nel fiabesco Il pesce e in Un racconto consolatorio, con le sue riflessioni sul rapporto tra artista e pubblico.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

About:
Winter’s Tales is a short story collection written by the Danish writer Karen Blixen ( also known as Isak Dinesen) and published in 1942. These tales were written and published during the Nazi occupation of Denmark during World War II, which can be felt sometimes in the tone of these stories. However none of them are set in the 20th century. They’re all set in the 19th century with the exception of a couple stories. An undertone of longing seems to be present in most of the stories. Whether it’s to escape somewhere else or of love. Many of the love interests have such longing between them but nothing ever gets consummated so to speak.

Did I Like It?:
This was a very enjoyable collection of short stories. I had previously read the author’s memoir about her time in Africa, Out of Africa and was excited to read her fiction. She is truly a wonderful writer and storyteller. These stories all had a folktale feel to them. All set in the past. In various places in Europe and Scandinavia. There wasn’t one bad story in the whole collection! I enjoyed them all.

The Sailor- Boy’s Tale was about a boy who one day saves a peregrine falcon on his ship, only to find out later on that it was actually a shape shifting Lapp woman ( I believe the proper term for them now are the Sami people) who does him a favor in return. This story was mostly set in Norway.

The Young Man with a Carnation was about a writer staying in Belgium who is afraid he can’t keep up the esteem he has built up for his writing and is only doing it for his ego. He sees a man one night who looks so happy and he realizes he does not feel this way, which gives him a strong desire to run away to sea. He doesn’t end up doing it, but it changes his perspective on his writing and his motives.

The Pearls was about a newly married woman on her honeymoon who was disconcerted that her husband didn’t ever seem to feel any fear and was determined to make him feel it at some point.

The Invincible Slave- Owners was about a man staying at a hotel in Germany where he falls in love with this girl staying there. She seems wealthy and ever dependent on her governess. One of her ‘slaves’ that she couldn’t do without as the man saw it. He realizes that she is not what she seems and ends disguising himself to her as well.

The Heroine was about an English man staying in a German hotel during a war between Germany and France. Some French people are also staying at the hotel including a beguiling young woman. When they are all captured by the Germans the young French woman saves the day by respecting herself.

The Dreaming Child was about a poor orphan boy who dreamed that he was from a rich and great house. When he is actually adopted into one he accepts it as his own and bewilders his new parents. His step mother in particular realizes they are truly similar as they share the trait of dreaming and the lines between reality and fantasy are blurred. This one was one set in Blixen’s native Denmark.

Alkmene was about a mysterious girl that was adopted. Her neighbor who is a lot older than her was her friend for a long time and eventually fell in love with her, but she had other ideas for her life. This one felt strange, but also that air of longing was particularly poignant in this one.

The Fish was one story not set in the 19th century. It was set in the Middle Ages following King Erik. He can’t ever seem to find satisfaction in his life anymore. Then a tale is told of how he came in possession of a certain lady’s ring through the belly of a fish. Apparently in actual life King Erik was murdered for seducing this lady. I like how Blixen came up with a story of how that assumption might have been made. This was another set in her native Denmark and it was cool it drew on the history as well.

Peter and Rosa was about two cousins brought up together. The boy desperately wants to run away to sea and Rosa after thinking she’d like it if he’d leave discovers she doesn’t want him to go after all. This story ended up having such a magical feel. Also extremely poignant in its sense of longing and desire. Even of clashing passions. It ended in such a dramatic, dark, fairytalesque, but beautiful way. It’s hard to pick , but this might be my favorite.

Sorrow - Acre was about a young man returning to his Uncle’s farm in Denmark. This was the other story not set in the 19th century ( I think it was the 18th). His uncle is making a woman work a whole field of his in order to save her son from being punished for burning down a barn. This story was about new ideas clashing with old ones. A new way of thinking colliding with an old order.

A Consolatory Tale was about a man and his friend talking in a cafe in Paris. The man is a writer and tired of how an artist always needs the public. His friend tells him the story of a time in Persia when he was intimate with the Prince and how he discovered that opposites always coexist. Rich and poor. Men and women. Artists and the people who consume the art. This was the most moralistic and because it seemed like it was trying to teach a lesson I liked it the least, but it was still good.

Do I recommend this?:
Yes! Wonderful short stories if you’re looking for a good classic collection. This is for those who like the past, a sense of wistfulness, desire or longing or are looking for some good Danish literature. While this is called Winter’s Tales there’s nothing wintry about it except perhaps the mood, so you don’t necessarily need to read it in winter.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love her descriptions of nature: the snowy night in Paris that seems to return the city to nature with Notre Dame looming more like a cliff in the dark, and best of all the "time when all the world was blue" in the first story. That story within a story is my favorite of all of these.
Another joy of the stories is her allusions to the Bible and Shakespeare, the way she turns them to her own original perspective.
These are very winter's tales. Mystifying and often inscrutable in ways that are both intriguing and a bit maddening but always worth pondering. But, aside from what the story might mean, I just enjoy the experience of listening to the story-teller.

[Isabella Leake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ordinarily I'm not very fond of short stories, but this collection was so sparkling and so engrossing as to make forget all disinclination for the genre. Isak Dineson is a new author to me, and this book -- with its crisp, dazzling prose and its eleven rich, perplexing stories -- has made me an ardent admirer.

Reading the whole volume takes a while, because each tale compels one to savor and digest an exquisite, elegant feast before moving onto the next. You absolutely cannot binge these stories!

Most of the stories are set in the 19th century, one is medieval; most read as "broadly European" (not unlike the sorts of stories you might find in the Anglophone or French world) while a few seem very Danish; we meet landowners, peasants, sailors, scholars, parsons, orphans, kings. There is a strong spiritual and philosophical undercurrent to all the tales, as the characters invariably find themselves at a crossroads and apply themselves to discerning, in profoundly yet subtly Christian terms, the proper way forward. And do they find it? Usually the story ends enigmatically, with an invitation to work out the puzzle ourselves.

I am eager to reread this volume (it invites rereading and discussion!) and to become better acquainted with this author, who deserves to be ranked among the best writers of the 20th century.

[Christian Engler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Isak Diensen's book of ornate, Baroque prose is on an unreachable echelon separate from any writer writing literature today or even from her era. Her stories transport readers to a period where thinking and intelligence were elegant and refined, smooth and intermixed with tints of religiosity. Stories such as "The Invincible Slave-Owner" and "The Sailor-Boy's Tale" show Diensen's strong knowledge of Danish folklore and Baroque description. Mind you, this is not easy reading! The messages are simple, but yet they are dense, and it is very easy to overlook these simple truths as a result of that flamboyance and extravagant complexity for which she has become internationally recognized. Her themes are like those of any writer: strength, courage during adversity, love, etc... But it is how these themes are conveyed that make these tales remarkable. Isak Diensen a.k.a. Baroness Karen Blixen's childhood was not one of the best, and these tales seem to indicate that. They transport the reader, take him or her away to places that seem unreachable, but her life does not mitigate the beautiful intelligence and language that she is able to convey. Diensen was twice nominated for the Noble Prize in Literature, losing to Ernest Hemmingway and Albert Camus. For more on her life and stories, read Judith Thurman's Life of a Storyteller: The Biography of Isak Diensen.

[Charles Sheard · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can honestly say that there was not a single story in this collection that I actually enjoyed reading. It is inexplicable to me that Dinesen chose to set virtually everything 50+ years in the past, except perhaps that as a child of the manor house she was already living in an embalmed circle of society that knew their best days were long gone. Unfortunately, although writing during WWII, her decision to focus on the dreamy, gauzy past days of the upper crust creates a stilted and stale language that actually leaves the reader thinking it was in fact written by a soppy amateur of the late 1800s. The most annoying thing, however, is that there are occasional moments of well-crafted descriptive writing - such as when a couple are strolling through a wood without talking, and come to a vista at the end - but then those moments are undermined when she speaks through her characters once more.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is just not as good as her earlier collection "Seven Gothic Tales," which has some of the best short stories ever written. That book had a youthful excitement and vigor, full of surprising stories that delighted in the art of keeping the reader on his toes. "Winter's Tales" is much...frostier. Much of it seems cold and dead. It feels as if Dinesen has decided not to be childish any more and instead feels obliged to share great "mature" wisdom with everyone without bothering to tell a ripping good story. Mind you, "Winter's Tales" was written during the dark days of WWII, so there's a reason why she's not as chipper. But as far as posterity is concerned, that doesn't cut the mustard.

[L.S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book in the past summer when I was thinking about the "snow queen" (H. Ch. Andersen) and was just curious to read some more danish fairy tales. But these stories were not what I expected, i.e. for children. They are 11 stories, mostly romantic (except 3 of them). I liked very much the narrative style with colorful descriptions, fjord-ish construction and sometimes unexpected situations. I also enjoyed some of the fantastic elements. But most of all I liked "Peter and Rosa", a love story with a tragic (expected) end.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

I struggled to finish this collection of short stories. The quasi-religious/mythical tone and subject matter was not to my taste, nor was the deliberately antiquated writing style. I feel like I missed the point on about 80% of the stories, while in the other 20% the point was so obvious that I wondered why even bother. I remember reading some of Dinesen's short stories in college and liking them, but either they were her best offerings or my taste has changed. Oh well. :-)

[e b · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love to read but I don't understand loving words, the sound of them, the interplay of them. The value of words and reading to me is to share information and ideas. Isak Dinesen makes me start to understand people who love words.

[Ero · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautiful and life-changing book of stories. Really something special.

[Cameo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bliver aldrig en Blixen pige.
Alle historierne blended sammen.
Hver eneste historie havde en historie, indeni en historie, indeni en historie indeni en fucking historie.
Uden noget reelt plot i nogen af novellerne.
Og skræmmende meget kristendom.
Jeg har ingen idé om hvad det var hun ville fortælle med de her historier. Men eventyr er det sgu ikke.

Når dét er sagt, er jeg nødt til at respektere hvad hun kunne med det danske sprog.
Magisk, men ustyrligt kedeligt.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nonostante mi siano stati consigliati caldamente, non posso dire di avere apprezzato particolarmente questi racconti. C'è una malinconia di fondo, un'atmosfera spesso di perduta grandezza, e il linguaggio è non di rado poetico, a tratti fiabesco. Non sono riuscito a trarne granché d'altro, probabilmente perché mi mancano i riferimenti.

[Rebecca Russavage · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an imperfect collection, but it felt refreshing—I think because, to me, the writer felt as if she were spinning her own stories instead of writing for an audience or for art. She loves telling them, and I have no doubt she loves having people listen to them, but they are hers.

[Ploni Almoni · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Han så i dette Øjeblik, tænkte han, Livets Veje som et sammentvundet og indviklet Væv, en Labyrint. Det var ikke ham eller nogen dødelig givet at rede det ud, eller at skille Vævets Traade ad. Liv og Død, Lykke og Ulykke, Fortid og Fremtid var sammenføjede i Mønstret.”

Det er i den grad værd at læse Blixen allerede for at få adgang til hendes sælsomme overvintrede smukke danske.

Men også historierne i Vintereventyr er et besøg værd. Især når man som jeg for sit indre øre høre dem læst op med min mormors tynde stemme.

Blixen forstår menneskene som ingen anden. Hendes karakter i dette erindringstunge eventyrlandskab af svunden tid er aldrig simple eller forudsigelige, de er grusomme, fornedrede, ydmygende, smukke, mærkelige og altid grebet af voldsomme sindsbevægelser.

Blegnæbbede mænd som i Den Unge Mand med Nelliken og Sorg-Agre fletter sig ind mellem tragiske kvinder og sære børn. Man bliver grebet og overrasket igen og igen. Historierne er som gamle æskespil med uendelige små lag og nye fortællinger gemt i den gamle.

Sandheden er aldrig helt sand erfarer vi igen og igen. Et barn kan skifte moder, antallet af perler i en smuk kæde kan vokse, hvad der før var en grusom druknedød en Judas-akt er pludselig en smuk kærlighedsdrøm. Verden flimrer for dine øjne. Læs Blixen!

Og hvis nogen skulle være bekymret for det er Vintereventyr (næsten) fri for den tunge koloniale arv, der uundgåeligt hæmmer den frie læsning af mange af Blixens andre store fortællinger. Så lad dig her med god samvittighed forfører af iscenesættelsens dronning.