A Treasury of Hans Christian Andersen

by Hans Christian Andersen, Erik Christian Haugaard (translator)

Return to Andersen's beloved fairy tales--and take a child with you as you venture into this special world of dreamlike delights. Includes "The Ugly Duckling," "The Emperor's New Clothes," "The Little Mermaid," "The Red Shoes," 68 more. Ages 9-14

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Fiction, Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Childrens, Anthologies

528 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1974

About the author

Hans Christian Andersen (often referred to in Scandinavia as H.C. Andersen) was a Danish author and poet. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, Andersen is best remembered for his fairy tales. Andersen's popularity is not limited to children; his stories — called eventyr, or "fairy-tales" — express themes that transcend age and nationality.

Andersen's fairy tales, which have been translated into more than 125 languages, have become culturally embedded in the West's collective consciousness, readily accessible to children, but presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of adversity for mature readers as well. Some of his most famous fairy tales include "The Little Mermaid", "The Ugly Duckling", "The Nightingale", "The Emperor's New Clothes" and many more. His stories have inspired plays, ballets, and both live-action and animated films.

Reviews

[Austin Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally experiencing Andersen's classic fairy tales for the first time was an absolute delight.
With 60+ of them, not all of them are hits, with more than a few being duds or feeling like filler content - but I would say the majority of them I enjoyed.

My absolute favorites, and some of my now all time favorite short stories/fairy tales are:
The Little Mermaid
The Tinder Box
The Traveling Companion
The Snow Queen
The Dead Child
The Little Match Girl

And perhaps a few others that I'm struggling to remember. The Little Mermaid is the peak, though, and one of my favorite short tales to exist.
Throw out all your notions of these stories that Disney is responsible for and read the source material, it's so much better!

[Ariana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm in the habit of collecting classics and books of fairy tales, and I'm very glad that I was able to find this one. It's got 72 different tales in it, all of varying length. Some of the language (mostly names of people and places) can be difficult to pronounce because of its Dutch origin, but the tales are easy to follow, descriptive, and easy to imagine.

I've thought about how one day I might like to read some fairy tales to my children, and that's the only place I hesitate in this collection. Aside from the fact that you'd be hard-pressed to find a tale that doesn't mention God (religion being something I'm not sure I want to push on any children I might have), there are also mixed signals about masculinity, femininity, gender roles, and patriarchy. Of course, it's good to know about all of that and they can easily be explained and taught correctly.

All in all, a good collection of fairy tales.

[Lisa Lingrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reminds me of my time spent with my Grandparents, my granddad now deceased and my Nana who's now 84. Eagerly running to the spare room, frantically searching for the extremely large hardcover book among all the worn, well-read, cast-off, garage sale paperbacks and Reader's Digest magazines. And there it would be. Lovingly open, and read cover to cover. Carefully place back on the shelve until the next time I would visit over the holidays. Memories.

[Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought I knew some of these stories, but even some of those that were familiar in name had a different outcome than what I was expecting. Apparently when these were written parents had no qualms about scaring the heck out of their children or in dashing hopes and dreams. Body parts being lopped off, homicide, and tragic endings abounded. At times it seemed a story was heading for a finale with a moral but along the way it became twisted and obscure. Only a few of the tales were pleasant and one, The Shadow, I found quite terrifying.

[Heather]

After reading Gregory Maguire's "A Wild Winter Swan", I wanted to re-read the story it was based on -- Hans Christian Andersen's "The Wild Swans". Thankfully, I have this Treasury with all the stories. I don't know if it is my age, or that it is 2021, but I hated almost everything about this fairy tale. I did love that the sister, Elisa, saves her brothers and herself, but that's about it. I really don't think this story aged well and am amazed that Maguire imagined such a lovely story from the remnants of this. Colour me impressed!

[Julie Ditton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this volume as a gift when I was studying for my degree in Elementary Education. Later in life I found it an invaluable resource for my storytelling programs as well as a great pick for sharing with my own children.

[Tonee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Hans Christian Andersen & this is 1 of the best collections of his stories!

[Meg Hibbitts · Rating 5 out of 5]

A classic worth reading- the short stories are fun and creative

[Vincent · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nico and I tackled most of these 72 classic tales together -- well, I read and he listened, most of the time. :) It took us nearly half of the year of inconsistend bedtime story reading to complete, as Nico has his own ideas of what we should read before bedtime now. I believe I read aloud about 67 of the stories, but not the longest one (The Ice Maiden). Several of these classic stories I read in abbreviated or abridged versions in my youth, but not directly from the source. And there were several stories making their first introductions. We have the The Brothers Grimm tales, but I think first, we will read "Where the Sidewalk Ends," and then maybe "The Hobbit," as well as all of Nico's picture/board books, over, and over, and over again. :)

[Jessica Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely adored this collection! Read a story each night at bedtime, except for the occasional stories that lasted several nights.

[Tonee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! Not just for kids either. Anyone can enjoy fairy tales whether you're 5 or 95.

[The Lady Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Haven't read all the stories yet, as there are many, but it's a handy collection to have. Most recently read The Snow Queen, which Frozen was based off of.