A First Book of Fairy Tales

by Mary Hoffman

From Brothers Grimm to Hans Christian Andersen, this beautifully illustrated anthology contains a range of the classic fairy tale stories any child would love to grow up reading. As well as favourites such as Cinderella, The Snow Queen and Jack and the Beanstalk, DK's A First Book of Fairy Tales also includes some wonderful stories that you might not know, such as The Fisherman and his Wife and Diamonds and Toads. Introduce your little one to the characters that enchanted you as a child and the nostalgic stories you could not put down! Mary Hoffman's charming retellings use simple language, ideal for reading or hearing aloud, while Julie Downing's stunning illustrations bring the characters to life, so children can follow and enjoy the fairy tales through the pictures. If your child loves disney and their princesses such as Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty, or if they love stories about giants and spells, this children's book would make the perfect gift for them! Step inside this fairy tale kingdom and get ready for some magic!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fairy Tales, Fiction, Short Stories, Classics, Fantasy

80 pages, Hardcover

First published August 15, 2001

About the author

See also works published under Mary Lassiter

Mary Hoffman is a bestselling British author and reviewer, born in 1945. She is a true enthusiast of Italy and spends a lot of her time there, which shows in her Stravaganza novels: a series currently in publication. In total, she has written over 80 books, including the aforementioned Stravaganza series and the bestselling picture book, Amazing Grace. Mary is also the editor of a review magazine Armadillo for kids.

Watch the book trailer for David, Mary Hoffman's most recent novel

Reviews

[Laura87 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mary Hoffman (a popular children’s author) has re-told many of the classic fairy tales known to adults and children all around the country.

‘A First Book of Fairy Tales’ is structured into fourteen of the most popular fairy tales: including the wonderful ‘Cinderella’, ‘Princess and the Pea’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’. Some other less well-known tales are told in a way to help young children understand important issues (such as informing them that it doesn’t pay to be greedy. This is a key aspect of the ‘The Selfish Giant’). Hoffman has re-told these in a way that not only includes the important aspects of the fairy tale, but which also includes illustrations to portray each character and each scene in the fairy tale.

My personal favourite of the fourteen fairy tales told in the book would have be ‘Cinderella’. This fairy tale is the portrayal of a young girl who is forced to cook and clean while her sisters get to go to the Prince’s ball. What Cinderella does not realise is, she has her very own fairy godmother to help her out of the situation. Finding herself at the ball (beautifully dressed up through the use of her fairy godmother’s magic), Cinderella finds and falls in love with a Prince. As the clock strikes midnight, Cinderella rushes out of the ball leaving behind one of her beautiful glass slippers. Knowing that the Prince (who finds the glass slipper) will marry whoever it fits, the sisters rush to try on the slipper. Unbeknown to them, it is in fact Cinderella’s foot that fits it. I particularly like the illustrations showing Cinderella transform from a young girl in rags to one in a beautiful dress.

These fairy tales would be suited to boys and girls of an age range of five to eleven. The illustrations wonderfully drawn in the book would help low-level readers (those who are dyslexic or who have English as an additional language) as they are drawn in such a way that helps to tell the story without using words. Furthermore, the tales are split up into sections, each with a picture to match, bringing it to life.

This book of fairy tales would be suited to reading aloud to a year three or four class. The book could also inspire the older children (those of ten or eleven) to write their own versions during a creative writing task or to act out in a drama activity.

[Nina Sanford · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. Several of the more well known stories. Well written and concise, but they don't lose the main details of the originals. You won't lose the kids' attention with these short fairy tales. Nice illustrations accompany each story.

[Aneesa]

I enjoyed the author bios

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 2, almost 3 year old likes this book. The individual tales are short, and simple for really young kids. I'll be switching to another fairy tale collection as soon as I think it is appropriate, but 4 stars for being good for little kids.

[Dea Lavia · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can read with the children before go to bed. Full illustration and it doesn't loose the origin story.. love it ❤️

[Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great compilation of short fairy tales.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book of fairy tales shortened and precise. I do miss the drawn out versions. The illustrations are a bit cramped/crowded on a page for my taste - but my boys seemed to be enchanted.

[Lotus · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like this book because it has creativity and effort in this book!

[Brandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a nice book to introduce children to some of the more popular fairy tales. My son wasn't always very into the fairy tales, but I enjoyed reading it! Nice illustrations, too.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

The books within the book are trimmed down which makes the stories seem clunky but give you a good overview of the stories nonetheless

[inas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ceritanya seru dan bisa selesai baca sekali duduk. Gaya bahasanya sederhana, gampang dicernan (karena ini children's book wkwkwk), dan konfliknya menarik.

Ada beberapa cerita populer yang udah pernah aku baca, ada juga yang aku belum familier. I enjoy reading all of them, although since it's simplified, I can't help but raise questions here and there.

Also, karena ini buat anak-anak, ceritanya masih seputar baik vs. jahat. Buat anak kecil mungkin bisa diterima, tapi aku yang udah dewasa jadi terlalu analitis. (I didn't mean to ruin the fun tho 🙈)

Contoh elemen yang agak one dimensional:

1. Beberapa kakak cewek digambarkan culas dan serakah (Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Diamonds and Toads)

2. Gampang banget menikah sama stranger, padahal baru ketemu berapa hari.

Some cases kayak Beauty + Beast sama Diamonds and Toads berasa mereka nikah karena Beast ternyata pangeran ganteng, dan cewek di Diamonds bisa menghasilkan kekayaan.

Ya gapapa sih, tapi kok bisa gitu 🙈

3. Beberapa tokoh jahat sebenernya ga salah banget. Contoh di Selfish Giant, orang asing seenaknya masuk wilayah rumah dia. Ya pantes marah. Atau ibu tiri Rapunzel yang nyulik dia karena ortu kandungnya ingkar janji. Atau Jack and the Beanstalk yang barang-barangnya dicuri trus tantrum. To me, they're justified 🤭

Alhasil, aku jadi dapet beberapa inspirasi dari dongeng-dongeng ini. Berkhayal gimana kalo tokoh jahat jadi protagonisnya. Sudut pandang apa yang bakal muncul? Kayaknya seru. Tapi gatau nulisnya kapan wkwkwk 🙈

So yeah, I quite enjoy it and this book deserves four solid stars 😊🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Mat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my daughter's very first book review ever. (She's eight and English is her second language, Japanese is her first).

She asked me to type it up.

(My daughter's book review)

"Sleeping Beauty" is my favourite fairy tale because everyone falls asleep for a hundred years.
Cinderella was the character I liked best because she was so kind and her fairy godmother gave her new clothes and she looked beautiful.
A First Book of Fairy Tales was my first ever English book and when I finished it, I felt happy.

[Jessica S · Rating 3 out of 5]

The short, easy to understand popular fairy tales given were at the perfect level for my 3 and 4 year old. The only downfall was the illustrations.

[Ashley · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is the biggest misogynist nightmare I have ever read. Absolutely disgusting.

[Sandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

We love to read Fairy Tales. This is a beautifully illustrated book and had slightly different versions of the stories than what we had previously come across.

[NEEL Singathia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Book. Can be read fast. Completed within 1 hour.

[Judy Tarver · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good collection of classic children’s fairy tales that a lot of them are sure to read over and over and remember very well.

[Paula Greenfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book to start your kids listening to fairy tales. It's a quick and fun book to read.

[Ebookwormy1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mary Hoffman's brief fairy tale narration and Julie Downing's comic-pastel illustration conspire to produce a family fun fairy tale edition.

Hoffman's attention to moving the narrative forward without getting bogged down in details makes it well suited to the youngest of readers/ listeners. Also, while well known tales are included (see below for a list), the twists, turns and outcomes will surprise, as this is not a Disney-fied rendition. It's a good opportunity to point out to youngsters the fluidity of story throughout low literacy European cultures, as well as the difference between fiction and non-fiction (or not-real and real, which is always baffling!). A similarly concise introduction that discusses the fairy tale genre and conclusion that provides tidbits about the original authors help to round out the educational aspect of indulging in these classics.

Downing's art features muted tones with particular attention to facial expressions. The avoidance of realism is welcome to tone the 'scary' parts down for youngsters, while adding to the fanciful nature of the stories.

We thoroughly enjoy this book. I'm sure there are many excellent fairy tale books out there, but this one is ours. It's not particularly special as a publication, but the time we have spent together has given it a special status among our family. Recommended.

More for this age:
Mary Engelbreit's Mother Goose, Engelbreit, 2005
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Stories in this edition include:
Introduction (2 page description of fairy tale genre)
Cinderella, Charles Perrault/ French
The Selfish Giant, Oscar Wilde/ English
Rapunzel, The Brothers Grimm/ German
Jack and the Beanstalk, Traditional English Tale
Sleeping Beauty, The Brothers Grimm/ German
The Little Mermaid, Hans Christian Andersen/ Dutch
The Frog Prince, The Brothers Grimm/ German
Beauty and the Beast, Madame de Beaumont/ French & English
Diamonds and Toads, The Brothers Grimm/ German
The Twelve Dancing Princesses, The Brothers Grimm/ German
The Fisherman and His Wife, The Brothers Grimm/ German
The Princess and the Pea, Hans Christian Andersen/ Dutch
Rumplestiltskin, The Brothers Grimm/ German
The Snow Queen, Hans Christian Andersen/ Dutch
About the Storytellers (1 page conclusion)

[Dixie Maier · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A First Book of Fairy Tales” is a collection of folklore intended for children 7 to 12 years old.

Mary Hoffman’s “A First Book of Fairy Tales” is a collection of 14 retold fairytales that show the consequences of greed, pride, and vanity, all while showing the stories of love.

I gave this book a 4-star rating. This collection of fairytales contains stories that both young boys and girls will like, ranging from Cinderella to Rumpelstiltskin. I like that each individual story contains the most important and necessary images/pictures that help the younger readers/listeners follow along, as well as each story is a different length depending on what the message is. This collection captures the attention of readers and I believe it’s effective in understanding the individual message of each fairytale.

[Nichole · Rating 4 out of 5]

My 3 year old son and I read this as a part of Sonlight's P3/4 curriculum. My son loves this book and often requests his favorite stories (Jack and the Beanstalk, Beauty and the Beast, and The Frog Prince) over and over at bedtime. This is a nice collection of simplified, well illustrated fairy tales for little ones. We especially enjoyed how certain parts of the text are incorporated into the illustrations. I enjoyed that there is a good mix of familiar and less familiar stories. The retellings are simple and perfect for reading aloud. I was glad to introduce my son to the original versions of stories that he has seen in movies, like Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid. This is a great introduction to fairy tales for little ones.

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This really is a first book of fairy tales--the writing is pared down and very simple. Surprisingly, it does retain a lot of key elements of the original fairy tales.
I'm not crazy about the pictures. It is definitely not a multicultural book--everyone looks white, except in The Little Mermaid, the princess who finds the prince on the beach is swarthy and obviously non-white. (She is the only one in the entire book. What is up with that?)

[Evan Sneed · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just started reading this book, I think it will take me awhile to get through it, there are so many pictures and stories. So far my favorite is Jack & The Bean Stalk!!

[Wanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice collection of fairy tales, retold concisely. Each story is no longer than five pages long, a perfect length for a bed-time story. The illustrations are bright and cheery.

[Vivi · Rating 5 out of 5]

My daughter loves this book she could make me read all the fairy tales every day. I hide this book once a while because I get tired reading Cinderella.

[Mckinley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cover the main fairytales. Pictures on every page.

[Miss Allie]

Read Rapunzel for Storytime.