The Nutcracker and The Strange Child

by E.T.A. Hoffmann, Anthea Bell (Translator)

ETA Hoffmann’s The Nutcracker and the Mouse King may be familiar to many, having served as the inspiration for Tchaikovsky’s famous ballet. However, the ballet was based on a French retelling of the story, and Hoffmann’s German original is rarely translated in its entirety.

This edition of the complete German classic, in a new translation by the eminent translator Anthea Bell, displays the full range of the author’s quirky power of invention. It is published here alongside another lesser-known tale, The Strange Child, in which a young brother and sister meet an unusual playmate in the woods and have to deal with a sinister new schoolmaster.

Deliciously dark, endlessly imaginative and funny, Hoffmann’s stories still enthrall children and adults alike to this day.

Genres: Fantasy, Classics, Christmas, German Literature, Young Adult

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

Ernst Theodor Wilhelm Hoffmann, better known by his pen name E. T. A. Hoffmann (Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann), was a German Romantic author of fantasy and horror, a jurist, composer, music critic, draftsman and caricaturist. His stories form the basis of Jacques Offenbach's famous opera The Tales of Hoffmann, in which Hoffman appears (heavily fictionalized) as the hero. He is also the author of the novella The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, on which the famous ballet The Nutcracker is based. The ballet Coppélia is based on two other stories that Hoffmann wrote, while Schumann's Kreisleriana is based on Hoffmann's character Johannes Kreisler.

Hoffmann's stories were very influential during the 19th century, and he is one of the major authors of the Romantic movement.

Reviews

[Megan Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The pretty cover got me and i love the nutcracker ballet (and barbie movie!!) so i bought it and i had no idea the original story was so different!! there’s a lot of elements similar and some the same but it’s such a great story itself, i loved the themes in both stories, and the strange child was completely new to me but i loved it nonetheless!! whimsical, sweet, and nostalgic!!

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was different than I had expected yet still lived up to the magic of the Nutcracker ballet I’d grown up dancing. I had some how glossed over that there was a second story included in this book and so I was surprised when then Nutcracker ended abruptly! And with marriage! Goodness gracious Marie is but a babe!

The best quote had to be, “The whole company jumped up from the table, the royal physician tried in vain to feel the unfortunate King’s pulse, a deep and nameless grief seemed to be rending him apart. At long last, after much consultation and the application of strong remedies for reviving a person in a faint, such as burnt feathers and the like, the King to some extent came back to his senses, and barely audibly he stammered out the words, ‘Not enough bacon!’”

I did like the Strange Child too. I thought it was an unusual and clever story that only seems creepy by our modern standards and worries about whatever something nefarious is afoot.

I’d love to read both of these to my child someday.

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most magical tale indeed! There was a bit of a confusion in the first two chapters, with a few sentences that didn’t seem to read right. I’m not sure if it’s a translating error or something else, but excluding that, the entire story was a thrill to read!

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tells the classic story of Marie. One Christmas Godfather Drosselmeier gives Marie a nutcracker. Marie joins her magical nutcracker as he battles the Mouse King. It's a charming story and Tchaikovsky's inspiration for his ballet.

Also included in this edition is the short story, The Strange Child. A brother and sister meet a strange child in the woods. Rather creepy story making it a unique addition with The Nutcracker.

[louise m. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Verdict: 67,5%

Two tales. My favorite must be the Nutcracker. Rarely told in its original and this was it. Wonderful imagination and sublime parts but I wanted it to be even more dark and nightmarish.

[Zoltán · Rating 4 out of 5]

Íme, kettő a Hoffmann-irományok közül, melyekről emberemlékezet óta folyik a polémia: való vagy nem való gyermekek kezébe. Jómagam hajlamos lennék azok pártját fogni, akik a mesék szinte állandó viszonyrendszerét, a jó és a rossz szakadatlan küzdelmét, illetve a rossz szinte szélsőségesen plasztikus karakterábrázolását olyasvalaminek fogják fel, melytől nem megkímélni, hanem amelybe éppenséggel bevezetni érdemes a gyermeki elmét.
A könyvet olvasgatván jómagam is megtapasztalhattam, amire mások már előre figyelmeztettek: a Diótörő megannyi feldolgozása között szinte elveszik a történet eredeti magja. Már ezért megéri az eredeti művet kézbe venni és végigolvasni. Nehezebb dió (legyünk stílusosak) a kötetben szereplő másik mese, mely Az idegen gyermek címet viseli. Ez bizony bő kézzel méri a feszültséget, a jellegzetes hoffmanni homályt, illetve a jó és a rossz összecsapásából természetszerűleg fakadó szomorúságot. Megfejteni nem érdemes. Átérezni annál inkább.

[Mckinley · Rating 2 out of 5]

These are old and odd stories. The Nutcracker is the bases for the ballet. And the other is a sort of weird scarey fairytale.

[Alisa]

Confession: I came for The Nutcracker.

It did not disappoint. I'm surprised that I had never read the original story before!