The Twelve Dancing Princesses

by Ruth Sanderson

Ruth Sanderson retells and illustrates the classic Brother Grimm tale with lavish full-color oil paintings.

Genres: Picture Books, Fairy Tales, Childrens, Fantasy, Classics, Romance, Fiction

32 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1990

Reviews

[Marquise · Rating 5 out of 5]

G-o-r-g-e-o-u-s! This version written and illustrated by Ruth Sanderson is now my favourite rendition of the Twelve Dancing Princesses fairy tale, together with the version by the Mayer & Craft duo.

[Ambie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my favorite book for the longest time. I was in love with the illustrations and my mom would change the names to hers and my dad's 💙

[Maya Yankulova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Мнооого красиви принцеси!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a tale that always intrigued me, so I look for the unique detail in each version I read. I really appreciate that, in this one, there's a subplot about the princes who had been trying to solve the mystery. And I appreciate that this is probably the most gorgeously illustrated version. But Michael doesn't seem to do anything to earn the help of the crone... so, unfortunately, it's not perfect. Still I do recommend it for those of you who love the tale or who love sumptuous paintings of princesses & forests....

[Maria Yankulova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Историята е преразказана чудесно от Рут Сандерсън, а илюстрациите са вълшебство.

[Книжни Криле · Rating 5 out of 5]

„Дванайсет танцуващи принцеси” е една от най-популярните и обичани приказки, публикувани от Братя Грим. Сега обаче пред нас се разкрива възможност да преживеем приказката отново, преразказана по невероятно красив начин от талантливата Рут Сандерсън! Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле":

https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...

[Schoppie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rich illustrations help to make this book a good bed-time story!

[Katrina Lybbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful, beautiful, loved it.

[akchaism · Rating 5 out of 5]

the twelve dancing princesses was my favourite fairy tale back when i was a little kid. now it's a pleasure to read the retelling of this story with gorgeous illustrations. i really enjoyed looking at beautifully made oil paintings, and i do think they conveyed the story more than the text itself. they were full of great details, plus the accuracy of the medieval setting was on point, it was clear that ms. sanderson made her research. story itself was, obviously, intended for children. however it still kept my interest as an adult, i'd say, partly because of the feeling of nostalgia.

[Lady Tea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rating: 5 /5

A beautiful retelling of one of my favourite fairy tales, this version focuses more on the story as a moral of romance rather than of trickery. The illustrations are stunning and detailed, and overall it was just a pleasure to read! Evidently, a re-read for the future and a bedtime story that's good for children of all ages!

[Jessica Tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was told that Ruth Sanderson's illustrations were beautiful, and they did not disappoint! I would have loved to own this as a little girl. Each page is like a fine painting, and the writing is well done too. In my opinion, this book is an excellent example of children's picture books/literature. Looking forward to seeing more of Sanderson's work.

[Mary Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adapted from a tale by the Brothers Grimm. The story fascinated me when I was a child, but it's the oil paintings that interested me this time. Very pretty princesses, very pretty colors and gorgeous colors.

[Suvi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Four stars for the gorgeous and magical oil paintings, three stars for choosing the diluted Victorian version. I understand the publication was probably meant to be suitable for younger children, hence the lack of references to death and using love as motivation, but that's just not that interesting to me personally.

[Alantie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another lovely fairy tale accompanied by absolutely beautiful pictures. Admittedly I prefer versions that have a better explained reason for the girls having to dance, but it’s still a fun story for kids.

[Mrs B · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's tempting, when praising a fairytale book, to rave about the painting but ignore the writing. In this case, despite the exquisite oil paintings by the author, the writing must also be given its due. The story is beautifully, flowingly, evocatively told. Ruth Sanderson is one talented lady!

What can you say about the illustrations, having gawped at them happily, page after page? I did have doubts, at first, about the half-short half-long hairdo of the Lad in this story (his name is Michael): the look of a 70s boyband idol? But I got over that. The people in this book are represented as individuals, but not overly so: I actually prefer slightly idealized faces in fairytales (think, for instances, of the faces in Arthur Rackham's work). Everyone is given real expressiveness, genuinely expressing what we can imagine, as told by the text, are their thoughts. The only time that I thought this failed to happen was when the princess is telling the Lad her real thoughts, and she looks as if she's reaching out for a beloved dog or child rather than crying out to intervene. Also -- and this is a quibble but as an artist I think it's worth mentioning -- the dancing shoes are supposed to be worn out. We see these worn-out shoes, as motifs, on page after page. But the shoes are represented as having become unstitched from their soles: gaping open at the toe and beyond. Now, I know that this is fantasy, so anything can happen. But surely the important sign of a worn-out shoe is that the heels are worn (and the toes are scuffed). Hence the term for a poor person -- 'down at heel'. Worn heels. (My husband doesn't agree with me, by the way. He thinks that in this fantasy world, the shoes fall apart structurally even if they don't degrade mechanically. He may be right, but I'm not convinced.) Otherwise, Ms Sanderson doesn't miss a trick.

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very beautiful pictures! Absolutely stunning! If you enjoy reading simple and short versions of classic fairy tales, then you will like this. It tells the story quickly(not surprising since it is a children's picture book) but there is a satisfactory amount of detail. As I said before, very beautiful pictures. The detail is fantastic and they make the story jump off the page. This was a pleasant telling of this story to read.

[Madeline · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used to get this book from the library just about every time I went when I was a little girl, A few years ago I remembered it and how gorgeous the Illustrations were. I bought quite a few other versions of the tale before I finally found this one again. It was like bringing home an old friend. The Illustration of the princesses sneaking through the golden wood is particularly enchanting.

[Antoaneta Kostovska · Rating 5 out of 5]

Красива книга! Обичам я!

[Rolena Weber · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite, underrated fairy tales! Ruth does a beautiful job telling the story and bringing it to life with stunning paintings.

[Sarah Košiarčiková]

Barbie and the twelve dancing princesses was better 🎀

[Sandra Sy]

"The Twelve Dancing Princesses" was copyrighted in 1990, Retold and Illustrated by Ruth Sanderson. The story is about twelve dancing princesses who wake up with worn-out shoes each morning as if they were dancing all night. Their father proclaims that whoever can solve the mystery is granted marriage to one of his daughters. A young man named Michael is given a cloak that causes him to be invisible so he can follow the princesses without being seen. He is able to uncover the mystery of the worn-out shoes and is given the reward of marrying the youngest princess. This book is a great read-aloud option for children in 3rd grade and above. Students will be able to develop in their understanding of narrative structure.

[Set · Rating 1 out of 5]

The painting above is Isabella of Spain.
The landscapes are beautiful but the people are not very good looking except the youngest princess that looks like Queen Isabel of Spain. "Some were fair, some were dark, but the one whom the garden boy thought the most fascinating was the princess Lina." Surprise, all the princesses were portrayed as brunettes except princess Lina the blonde. Apparently the illustrators thinks that the most beautiful people in the world are blonde but there are beautiful and ugly people with different hair color.

[Emily Foster · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently read ‘The Secret of the Tattered Shoes’ and loved it! I read this to gain some more context of that book as this is the original fairytale which inspired that book. I liked this book, I think the framed illustrations are beautiful and I’m glad that I now know the significance of the swans from the original story. However I prefer the other book in the way the story is told and how the writer adapted it.

[Brian Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of plot holes, but obviously that’s not the point of fairy tales like this. Great illustrations. There’s not a bad guy. Why do the princesses like to dance so much? Was there an evil spell cast upon them or something? Maybe a rewrite of this could have them cursed by someone they didn’t invite to a regular dance with them. This curse would force them to dance every night. Then the gardener could undo two curses, on one the princesses and another on their suitors.

EDIT: oh, and the gardener’s mullet is hideous.

[Camila · Rating 2 out of 5]

Mmm...I didn't really get this story. So the young man finds out there's some kind of magic in the drinks that enchants the princes, which the princesses are reluctant to share with their father, the king. But what about the shoes? That never stop them from dancing? I really wish this was explored and explained more. Otherwise, this story wouldn't have fallen flat. Nice interior page art though.

[Miss Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Twelve princesses keep wearing out their shoes during the night. The king offers a reward for finding out thwat they are doing when they should be sleeping. Can the garderener figure it out. Elementary or one on one for length

[Aramiheartilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I used to read this book over and over as a child - specifically this edition - because the illustrations are so, so beautiful!!! Lovely to find this again and to finally own a copy! This will forever be my fave version because of Ruth Sanderson’a beautiful illustrations.

[Mary Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this version of the story, its way more girl power and not creepy. I had this growing up and always loved the illustrations of the shoes. I tried to find it again and found another version that absolutely creeped me out. This ones the bessst.

[Celesta · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite versions so far, and I've been reading a lot of retellings. I like how much was between Michael and Lina because it made them feel like real people who I could relate to. I also like that they actually got to know each other before they were engaged.

[Zornitza Ivanova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Суперски илюстрации!