Ulla ThynellCritiques

I love this collection of nordic tales. I have read several of them to my children and enjoyed it by myself as well!

A cute collection of folktales from Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The book is beautifully illustrated. I’m looking forward to reading more from this series.

received as part of librarything's early review program--

this is a GORGEOUS book. The illustrations, the stories, even the actual book as object; all satisfying. I hope to get the rest of the set.

‘’In the days of our forefathers, when there was nothing but wretched boats up in Nordland, and folks must needs buy fair winds by the sackful from the Gan - Finn, it was not safe to tack about in the open sea in wintry weather. In those days a fisherman never grew old. It was mostly womenfolk and children, and the lame and halt, who were buried ashore.’’

The Forest Bride: The Story of a Little Mouse who was a Princess (Finland): A very well-known tale about an enchanted princess who was turned into a mouse until a young man became her husband willingly. Versions of this tale can be found in Ukraine, Russia and the Czech Republic.

East of the Sun and West of the Moon (Norway): If you love fairytales and folktales, this one must surely be one of your favourites. A young woman is given to a white bear as a bride but her curiosity makes her travel East of the Sun and West of the Moon to save her beloved. The Nordic version of the Eros and Psyche Greek myth is a tale about the forces of love and evil.

The Magician’s Pupil (Denmark): When your son doesn’t like any job in the world, make him an apprentice to a mighty wizard.
…or don’t…

Hildur, the Queen of the Elves (Iceland): The queen of the elves has been cursed to see her people and her family only once in a year at the expense of a murder in the land of the mortals. A clever herdsman is the only one who can lift the curse in an atmospheric, bittersweet tale.

The Widow’s Son (Norway): An inquisitive young man finds himself in the centre of unfortunate adventures…

Toller’s Neighbours (Denmark): In this lovely tale, a farmer’s family and the Mount - Folk live together in peace and prosperity until the sound of the bells becomes too loud…

Mighty Mikko: The Story of a Poor Woodsman and a Grateful Fox (Finland): Mikko sees his fortune turned following his father’s blessings and aided by a delightful fox.

Old Nick and the Girl (Sweden): The Devil should have known better before he decided to mess with an intelligent, resourceful girl.

The Way of the World (Norway): A tale that teaches us that the ways of the world are unbelievably unfair and arbitrary.

Death and the Doctor (Norway): Death is willing to make a pact but when you try to trick him the end is not going to be in your favour. A whimsical, yet deeply sad tale.

‘’All I Possess!’’ (Sweden): A husband’s greed becomes his doom when his clever wife decides to put an end to his cruelty once and for all.

The Old Woman and the Tramp (Sweden): The sheer genius of a tramp rewards him with a hearty meal and a bright silver coin. Also, soup. Soup is magic, I tell you!

The Honest Penny (Norway): In this famous Norwegian tale, a boy is rewarded for his honesty and, for once, a mother’s advice is horribly wrong. And cats. Cats always save the day.

The Boy Who Did Not Know What Fear Was (Iceland): A boy meets corpses, ghosts, goblins, dead warriors, hags and remains unperturbed in a classic tale from Iceland.

The True Bride: The Story of Illona and the King’s Son (Finland): A magnificent, lavish tale about two siblings, an evil forest witch, the kingdom of the Sea and a brilliant dog.

The Giant Who Had No Heart (Norway): A clever boy stands up to a giant and saves her brothers and six princesses.

Jack of Sjöholm and the Gan-Finn (Iceland): In the most impressive tale of the collection, a young man is faced with the strangest of adventures, aided by a dark-haired maiden. Mystical, haunting, almost arcane like the Northern Lights.

Let us travel to the North in the company of beautiful legends…

My reviews can also be found on https://theopinionatedreaderblog.wordpress.com/

My library just got a bunch of these illustrated books of folktales in. After reading "Irish Gothic Fairytales" I was excited to move on to the Nordic fairytales.
These stories were cute. Most were fun to read. A few (like the last far too lengthy story in the book) were confusing to read and didn't seem to follow much of a plot structure. They were just jumbles of events without a clear progression of plot or character.
My biggest complaint is that I didn't learn much about Nordic cultures, other than what I could suss out myself from the folktales. In the "Irish Gothic Fairytales" book I read, each tale started with an explanation of a specific aspect of Irish culture. I learned where the story of banshees came from and the Irish tradition of hiring a woman to wail at a wake. I learned how Irish people feel about fairies. Now, I didn't get any of that with this book. I didn't get any tidbits teaching me about the traditions or cultural beliefs of the Nordic countries. It was just the folktales.
Then I get to the end and read the footnote that all of these stories were taken from public domain works, not changed in any way.
So, it's really a lazy cash-grab for this publisher.
Three stars because some of the stories were still whimsical and fun to read. The book would have been much better if the publisher had added anything new to the works, maybe included some commentary from scholars of Nordic folktales and culture.

Enchanting. Although I was more familiar wit some of the stories than I suspected, they had a lovely exotic, scandinavian feel to them. I also liked the fact that the tales weren't disney-fied and all goody-goody an sugary sweet.

I received a copy through Netgalley, opinions entirely my own.

*I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

This book is stunning. It is absolutely stunning. The cover, the illustrations, the stories, everything. I can't express how beautiful it is. The stories teach you so much about the Nordic culture and I kept telling myself I would 'Read just one more story!' and ended up having the book done in two sittings. I will buy this book when it comes out for sure because it will be even more exquisite in its final form. I would recommend this book to anyone. And it will look amazing on my shelf next to [b:Celtic Tales: Fairy Tales and Stories of Enchantment from Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, and Wales|28645679|Celtic Tales Fairy Tales and Stories of Enchantment from Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, and Wales|Kate Forrester|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1460911520s/28645679.jpg|48832496] 5 out of 5 stars.

I absolutely adored this gem of a book. I am familiar with the fairytales of Hans Christian Andersen but didn't realize that there were so many folktales out there that needed to be told. These 16 stories from Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and Finland are special in their own right and add spice to the tales we do have. The translation is good and the drawings are exquisite. Highly recommended for those who love folktales.

I received a copy for review from LT early reviews.

I love this book! The illustrations and artistic layout of the book alone is worth it. I like tales themselves as well. They are easy to read, short, and fun. I can't speak to how well they represent the originals but they are great for me to reference and start to become familiar with the stories. I like having it as a reference book. It came in handy while reading East by Edith Pattou, which is a retelling of East of the Sun, West of the Moon. Highly recommend this as a gift, too.

I received this book through LT's early reviewer program. I have been lucky enough to win a few selections from Chronicle Books, and they never dissapoint. I love Chronicle Books! The quality of the binding , the beautifully illustrated and imprinted front cover, and the delightful endpapers set the tone for a beautiful experience when you sit down to browse the illustrations and finally read the delightful stories. It is truely a lovely book for a gift or to add to any folktale library.

This is a gorgeously illustrated book – vivid, fantastical images of dragons, swords, forest creatures, boats, magical beings, etc. An attached crimson ribbon bookmark is also included. The stories are typical of olden fairy tales, with running themes of good vs evil, trials and tribulations, beautiful maidens, moral lessons, etc. As with any collection, some of the folktales were more enjoyable and charming than others. Too many perhaps featured similar/repetitive motifs such as seeking love or a wife, outwitting an enemy, finding riches, going on long journeys, etc. All in all though, this hardcover filled with whimsical stories would make a beautiful keepsake or gift for a child or even adult who enjoys learning about other cultural heritages.

I received this book from one of the early releases and let me say, I fell in love with it at first glance. It is such a beautifully illustrated and written book. Thus far, it is one of my favorite wins. I am truly grateful to have been picked out of all people.

The tales are so different than anything I have ever read. I've also never heard or read of tales outside of my country so it was neat to have this glance at a different culture and the stories they grew up hearing.
If there is one thing I am certain of, it's that is book is one that I am going to keep and read to my future kids.

I highly highly recommend this book. It's a beautiful read.

I received this as part of LT's Early Reviewer program.

This is a beautifully made book! Everything is so cleverly done: from the cover with glossy accents, to the inner board coverings, to the division of the stories into story 'types' (transformation, wit, and journeys), to the ribbon page marker, to the well-researched Sources section, I immediately loved the look/feel of the book.The art that goes with each story is also beautiful and folk-art ish, so it matches well with the theme of the collection. Each story includes its country of origin, and the lengths vary. I hadn't heard of any of these prior to reading this, but all the stories I've picked so far have been charming (haven't read them all yet). The entire vibe of the book had me wanting to make cocoa and read it by a fire in a big cozy sweater.

I also really loved that the collection includes a source list with the original documents and who translated them! (One story even has footnotes to explain terms and translation oddities!)

All in all, a 5/5. This would be really cute to give to older kids in lieu of a traditional fairy tale compilation.