East of the Sun and West of the Moon

Peter Christen AsbjornsenMar 2015

Rating 4.2
Word count
47K words
Chapters
17

Tags

Motivation and Growth Fairy TalesFantasy JourneyBear PrinceMagical AdventureCourage and WitIllustrated EditionNordic TalesNorwegian LoreFolk LegendParent-Child Reading

Summary

These Scandinavian fairy tales have had many interpretations through the years, but never have they been so beautifully illustrated as in this sumptuous edition. Golden Age artist Kay Nielsen, a master of fantasy, lavished the text with 25 intricately detailed color plates and numerous black-and-white images that glow with his phantasmagorical style. With 15 stories, including the popular 'Billy Goat's Gruff', this is one of the most stunning children's books ever produced. A visual treasure as well as a literary one, the volume offers readers a glorious journey into the world of Nordic folklore.

Editor's review

The value of this Nordic fairy-tale collection lies not only in the stories themselves but even more in the suite of illustrations Kay Nielsen made for the text: twenty-five finely wrought colour plates and a wealth of black-and-white images push the fantastic atmosphere to its limit. Among the fifteen tales gathered by Asbjørnsen are widely known pieces such as "The Three Billy Goats Gruff," which read with the crispness and rhythm of oral literature. For adult readers it is an illustrated art book to return to again and again; for children it is a beautiful entry point into Scandinavian folk narrative. It rewards slow reading in a quiet setting—whether you look at the pictures first and then read the text, or read the story first and turn back to compare it with the images, you will come away with something different each time. Note that it stays closer to the original character of traditional fairy tales, and some episodes are not deliberately softened; when reading together with children, explanation and discussion are advisable.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Not a good fit for

Reading tips

  1. Read through the stories first, then go back and study the corresponding illustrations to appreciate the interplay between word and image.
  2. When reading with children, choose one or two stories at a time and leave time for discussion afterwards.
  3. Keep the book close at hand as a short-story collection and read one piece in spare moments.
  4. Readers interested in the illustrations may note the stylistic differences between the black-and-white images and the colour plates.

Contents

  1. 版权信息
  2. PREFACE
  3. EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON
  4. THE BLUE BELT
  5. PRINCE LINDWORM
  6. THE LASSIE AND HER GODMOTHER
  7. THE HUSBAND WHO WAS TO MIND THE HOUSE
  8. THE LAD WHO WENT TO THE NORTH WIND
  9. THE THREE PRINCESSES OF WHITELAND
  10. SORIA MORIA CASTLE
  11. THE GIANT WHO HAD NO HEART IN HIS BODY
  12. THE PRINCESS ON THE GLASS HILL
  13. THE WIDOW’S SON
  14. THE THREE BILLY-GOATS GRUFF
  15. THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN
  16. THE CAT ON THE DOVREFELL
  17. ONE’S OWN CHILDREN ARE ALWAYS PRETTIEST

FAQ

What age of child is this book suitable for? The stories come from traditional folk tales, and some episodes are not deliberately softened, so the book suits school-age children reading with a parent, or older children who can understand the stories' background on their own. For younger children, an adult should select and explain the stories.
What place do the illustrations hold in this book? The illustrations are a major highlight. Kay Nielsen created twenty-five finely wrought colour plates and a wealth of black-and-white images in a fantastical, intricate style. Many readers collect this book precisely for the illustrations, and the pictures and text can be enjoyed separately.
Can I read this book without having read Nordic fairy tales before? Yes. The fifteen stories are independent of one another and require no prior reading. A few, such as "The Three Billy Goats Gruff," may already be familiar; the rest can be read in any order.

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About the author

Peter Christen Asbjornsen Author · Norwegian · 1812–1885

Peter Christen Asbjornsen (1812–1885) was a Norwegian folklorist. Public sources about him are limited, and few details of his life can be confirmed, but he is known for collecting and arranging Norwegian oral tales. Together with Moe, he co-edited a collection of Norwegian folk tales, preserving a large number of orally transmitted fairy tales and committing these narratives, which had depended on oral transmission, to written form. His representative work, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, draws on the Norwegian folk-tale tradition and belongs to the realm of fairy tales and folk narrative; on this Chinese book site it is classified under inspirational growth. The work is plain in language and striking in imagination, retaining the original flavor of folk storytelling and a Nordic regional character, and it has influenced later fairy-tale writing and folklore studies.