Nice Fairy Tales (Second Page)Stories illustrated by Carl Offterdinger (1829 - 1889), Fedor Flinzer (1932 - 1911), and Josef Emil Dolleschal (? - 1921).
Red CapEverybody knows the story about a little girl in red hood who goes to the woods to bring some food to her sick granny. She meets the wolf and things turn bad for her and her grandmother. But do we really know the Red Cap? Are we really familiar with its surprising history, reach symbolism, and numerous ways of interpretation?
Briar RoseBriar Rose is more known as the Sleeping Beauty. It's a very popular fairy tale about a girl who pays for the mistakes of her parents by falling into a long sleep, similar to death. Many courageous men tried to save her but the prophecy had to be fulfilled. Do you know this story can be traced back to the 14th century to medieval romance Perceforest?
Hansel and GretelThis is by far the most well-known story about a brother and a sister. They are left in the woods by their parents and caught by a cannibalistic witch. Yet, they don't lose their spirits, fight for their lives, help each other all the time, and finally succeed not only in surviving but in becoming rich too.
Master CatLife is not fair. Some people inherit a mill or at least a donkey, another has just a cat. Well, sometimes a cat can prove a surprisingly great help which is clearly presented in this popular fairy tale by Charles Perrault. The Master Cat or Puss in Boots is a fun, yet morally incorrect story about climbing up the social ladder.
Mother HolleMother Holle or Mother Hulda (a slightly different French version is titled Diamonds and Toads) is a classic story about a woman who has two daughters (or a daughter and a stepdaughter). She treats them unfairly always preferring one to the other. When both girls get a chance to show their strength and character, the mother is not happy with the results.
The Adventures of Baron MunchhausenBaron Munchausen is another trickster in this collection of stories. His adventures are outrageous and loaded with humor. His wit is outstanding defying logic and gravity. What is maybe even more interesting is the theory that this character is actually based on a real man from the 18th century.
Snow QueenSnow Queen is the most complex and in the opinion of many the best fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen, maybe the greatest fairy tale writer ever. It's a story about friendship and unconditional love placed in an interesting mixture of realistic and fantastic worlds. Many details of the story are taken from Andersen's personal life.
GenovevaGenoveva is a story based on medieval legend which is probably at least partly based on real people in history. The plot is simple - a chaste wife is falsely accused of adultery. And it was a rejected suitor who accused her. There are many legends related to the same plot and we can find a lot of fairy tales from the same family as well.
Gingerbread HouseGingerbread House is an almost forgotten fairy tale about a brother and sister who are very similar to Hansel and Gretel. There is a gingerbread house too (check the title). The main differences are: their mother and father are not bad characters, there is a bear instead of the witch in the house, and they escape instead of being imprisoned.
The Gnome MenThe Gnome Men is a classic story about old times when folk from this and the fairy world were much more connected. Fairy people helped people in Koln, for instance, making their life very easy but there's always somebody who gets an idea how to spoil the idyll. And then everything changes ...
Battle of Frogs and MiceBatrachomyomachia is the original title of the poem which is essentially a parody of Homer's Iliad. It's a story about the conflict between frogs and mice, starting with an accident and escalating to a real war. The gods don't intervene because they prefer to watch but after one day only something has to be done ...
Piper of HamelinThe city of Hamelin was infested with rats. They were everywhere, destroying food, and occupying the living space. Then, a man with a solution came by. He was a piper and he promised to take all the rats out of town for proper payment. Citizens promised him the money and he did his part of the agreement. But the folk of Hamelin had a different idea ...
All these illustrations together make a perfect set for a very special advent calendar made of 24 fairy tales, one for each magical evening:
This websie is a part of the Vintage Artists' Project