The Nutcracker

by John Cech (Adapter), Éric Puybaret (Illustrator), E.T.A. Hoffmann

What a special Christmas gift this will the beloved holiday fantasy, beautifully retold by John Cech (author of our Classic Fairy Tale series) and illustrated by Eric Puybaret, whose imaginative art helped turn Puff, the Magic Dragon into a blockbuster. Cech bases his version on E.T.A. Hoffman’s original, which features not only the story familiar to all ballet lovers, but other wondrous adventures—including the tale of Princess Pirlipat and an explanation of the origins of the Nutcracker himself.Lavishly and elegantly packaged, this belongs under every child’s tree.

Genres: Christmas, Picture Books, Holiday, Childrens, Fiction

40 pages, Hardcover

First published September 30, 2010

Reviews

[A Bear and a Bee Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lot of fun to read as a family. Plus, the illustrations are absolutely beautiful!

[Μ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Τις εκδοχές της ιστορίας όπου η ηρωίδα ονομάζεται Μαρί/Μαρία τις αγαπάω λίγο περισσότερο :)
Μέχρι στιγμής έχω διαβάσει τέσσερις εκδόσεις του Καρυοθραύστη και καθεμία ήταν λίγο διαφορετική από την άλλη και απέδιδε την ιστορία δίνοντας αλλού λιγότερη και αλλού περισσότερη βαρύτητα, παραλείποντας γεγονότα ή προσθέτοντας κάποιες λεπτομέρειες.
Η συγκεκριμένη ακολουθεί μάλλον τα χνάρια της ιστορίας του Χόφμαν, αλλά περιέχει παραλλαγές και πιο μοντέρνα αισθητική άποψη και -θα έλεγα- σχεδόν αφαιρετική εικονογράφηση. Για κάποιον ανεξήγητο λόγο την ήθελα πολύ, αν και γενικά προτιμώ μια πιο παραδοσιακή λεπτομερή εικονογράφηση στα κλασσικά παραμύθια. Το ένστικτό μου δεν με απογοήτευσε και μπορώ να πω ότι αγάπησα πραγματικά τόσο τις εικόνες του Ερίκ Πουιμπαρέ όσο και την απόδοση του Τζον Κετς. Πρόκειται για μία εκπληκτική εναλλακτική έκδοση ενός κλασσικού χριστουγεννιάτικου παραμυθιού.

[Katie Dryden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations

[Sherry Scheline · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit long for a child’s story. There are better versions of the nutcracker.

[Carol · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like it. And mouse pictures a bit too creepy for first grade students.

[Hanna Gonzalez · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit too long and dense for the target audience and unfortunately the illustrations were too creepy for my child.

[Lydia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am now realizing that I love children’s literature!
I wish I had read it before watching the ballet! A beautiful classic!!🎄

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good and comprehensive retelling of the classic tale of The Nutcracker. The text ran a bit too long to make it a single-sitting book for a six-yeear-old, but there is a place for longer picture books in our home library.

The illustrations are lovely, but oddly straightforward compared to some of the work in other books illustrated by Puybaret. I would have that the story of The Nutcracker would lend itself perfectly to Puybaret's whimsical and magical style, but, instead, he kept the artwork comparatively subdued.


Actual rating: 3.5 stars, but I round up.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

The illustrations of this book are beautiful. The writing is equally as beautiful. However, I think this would have been nicer if the text was some how cut into shorter sections with more pictures to make it a more enjoyable read.

Over all I liked the book alright and I will keep it in my picture book library.

[Teri · Rating 4 out of 5]

great prep for the ballet, and not as wordy as other versions we have seen (although still pretty wordy)