Hansel & Gretel: A Nightmare in Eight Scenes

by Simon Armitage, Clive Hicks-Jenkins (Illustrations)

Simon Armitage turns Hansel & Gretel into a darkly glittering fairy tale for grown-ups. In vivid and trenchant language, he puts a contemporary spin on the tale we know from the Brothers Grimm. Here is a twenty-first century story, whose preoccupations are poverty and hunger, war and flight, a shifting dystopian landscape where nothing is quite as it seems.

Text and illustration fuse beautifully to summon a nightmarish vision that nonetheless contains humour and humanity and the possibility of a more hopeful future to come.

Genres: Poetry, Fairy Tales

112 pages, Hardcover

Published October 5, 2023

About the author

Simon Armitage, whose The Shout was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, has published ten volumes of poetry and has received numerous honors for his work. He was appointed UK Poet Laureate in 2019

Armitage's poetry collections include Book of Matches (1993) and The Dead Sea Poems (1995). He has written two novels, Little Green Man (2001) and The White Stuff (2004), as well as All Points North (1998), a collection of essays on the north of England. He has produced a dramatised version of Homer's Odyssey and a collection of poetry entitled Tyrannosaurus Rex Versus The Corduroy Kid (which was shortlisted for the TS Eliot Prize), both of which were published in July 2006. Many of Armitage's poems appear in the AQA (Assessment and Qualifications Alliance) GCSE syllabus for English Literature in the United Kingdom. These include "Homecoming", "November", "Kid", "Hitcher", and a selection of poems from Book of Matches, most notably of these "Mother any distance...". His writing is characterised by a dry Yorkshire wit combined with "an accessible, realist style and critical seriousness."

Reviews

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Foam shrimps - remember them?"

[Lenno Vranken · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The forest a Garden of Eden by day,
full of earthly delights.
But a horror film after dark
and a ghost train at night."
-'Hansel & Gretel: A Nightmare in Eight scenes', van Simon Armitage

Een verbluffend boek, dat ik eerst niet wilde oppikken omdat de illustraties naar mijn mening wat te "stilistisch" waren. Toch werd ik gegrepen door de synopsis en besloot het werk mee te nemen vanuit Londen. Wat ben ik blij dat ik dit uiteindelijk heb gedaan! Ik ben nog nooit zoiets als dit tegengekomen.
Simon Armitage vertelt het verhaal van Hans en Grietje alsof je naar een toneelstuk zit te kijken. In het midden van het boek is er zelfs een intermissie met grappige reclameboodschappen. Het sprookje zelf speelt zich af in de 21ste eeuw, in een oorlogsgebied waar veel armoede heerst. Hans en Grietje moeten het te midden van al deze armoede en wreedheden zien te redden dankzij hun instincten en hechte band als broer en zus.
Dit boek was zeker actueel. De illustraties die ik eerst iets te "stilistisch" vond, voegden tijdens het lezen plotseling zoveel toe aan het verhaal. Heel het boek kreeg een extra nachtmerrieachtige sfeer door de verschillende prenten.
Zeker een aanrader voor liefhebbers van donkere sprookjes en interessante prentenboeken.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars - I think I would have enjoyed this more in the original (radio) performance format but it was still an interesting take on the tale with great illustrations.

[Erica Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was going to read this with my kids.

In the end I read it with just my eldest...

...and I'm glad. I had to read "shite", and "fuck" twice. I mean okay the second one of those was inferred from asterisks and other wildcard characters. But it was definitely fuck.

This is a warm and lyrical retelling of Hansel and Gretel. Much kinder towards the intentions of the parents. The context is war rather than poverty, and the ending is promising.

But we know the story.

And the cherry lips, the midget gems, the love hearts, and the foam shrimps.

Delicious.

[Book busy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an imaginative reimagining of the Hansel and Gretel story that seems trapped between infantile and adult with its melding of war and what seems Easter European trauma with occasional swears and the original childhood tale. It had a lovely rhythm to it but I almost wished it had gone further and been more cryptic as I still think this is ultimately a rather faithful retelling and I personally like my poetry to be more intensely soaked in allegory. This being said, its a genuinely beautiful book with excellent illustrations that rekindled a good deal of childhood spirit in me for the 15 minutes it took to read.
I would re-read this, I think.

However, I can't say it really changed my life by any means. Still, incredibly charming and its no surprise that Armitage is current Poet Laureate.

[Russio · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is what Simin Armitage does so well - captures the cadences of an age and breathes them into traditional tales like a bellows, so that the original story ignites and glows with a greater brilliance than before. This is a vibrant fire of a retelling, set against the background of reality for refugees and literally dripping with sweet delights.

[Theo Smaller · Rating 4 out of 5]

Only Simon Armitage could make Hansel and Gretel a story about a dystopian conflict.

The poet Laureate’s take on this fairytale is appropriately vivid in its language, and playful as ever. The camaraderie built up between the two siblings in such a short space is astonishing, and the presentation of the witch is perfectly spooky.

The scene in which the children return home at the end to find their mother killed by (presumably) a bomb is somewhat devastating and had me caring for Hansel and Gretel in a way I never thought I would. It goes beyond the fairytale in this regard, and tells a touching story about the survival of a family. The final page, ‘they each picked up a small white stone as a souvenir and moved on’ is poignant, and seems fitting for its modern nature. A family finding hope in each other as they flee from conflict is an increasingly prominent image even outside the realm of fiction today.

The story is illustrated in glorious fashion, with vibrant, stunning imagery which only adds to the immersive tone that Armitage creates. I particularly love the Picasso-esque depiction of Gretel inside her mother’s womb!

Overall, a fantastic depiction of a classic story, which probably only could have been pulled off by Simon Armitage.

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this very different take on the story of Hansel and Gretel as it ranged between thought -provoking and serious, funny and witty with many wonderful poetic devices along the way. (And I found the end met by the witch both very fitting, and rather clever!). Clive Hicks-Jenkins’ fabulous illustrations are the perfect foil for the text and a delight to behold.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations in this are stunning. The poetry wasn’t bad at all, especially for narrative poetry, but I am definitely going to try find the performance of this to listen to as I feel like it will translate better in spoken word.

[Sav · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so beautiful and cool, this was my first delve into narrative poetry and the way it presented the story was so playful and humorous, every page a delight. Loved it!

[Leticia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork

[Lila Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

birthday present from my nanna <3 nice escape from the stress of coursework!

[Kim Kirchner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Refreshing perspective on the fairy tale and told with a strong sense of voice. A quick read but one worth more than just one read.

[Sherry Mackay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! So clever so imaginative so magical.

[Harvey Loftus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the illustrations

[marisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

gorgeously sad