Hansel And Gretel by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

What is it?

 Hansel and Gretel

Who wrote it?

 Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

Where can it be found?

in 'The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales'
Edited by Maria Tatar

Adaptation?

It is one of the few revised versions the Grimms published.

My thoughts in exactly 10 words:

Women are evil, men are weak. Children must stick together.

Extended thoughts:

This was a good telling. There were surprisingly few annotations on this particular story, but it was still interesting. There were plenty of illustrations, including this one by Kay Nielsen which I liked:

The story itself seemed to make the women the evil characters, which can be troublesome when there are no good women and even Gretel cries at the drop of a hat... The good thing about this story is the children's resourcefulness in the face of trying times. Which is really the point of these stories isn't it? To socialise children and help them deal with their fears. 

Favourite Quote:

"The wife didn't give her husband a moment of peace until he consented to her plan."

Is it annotated?

Yes.

Most interesting thing I learned from the annotations:

 The earliest version by the Grimms didn't make the step-mother so evil and the centre of the plotting to rid them of the children. I think I'd like to read that version.

Moral of the story in my own words:

It's best to always be prepared for the worst. Oh, and eaves drop on your parents, you never know when they could be plotting against you.

 

3.5 Gold Stars

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