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The Little Mermaid
On her first visit to the surface, a young mermaid falls in love with the prince she rescues from a sinking ship
34 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1991
About the author
Hans Christian Andersen
6,795 books3,408 followersHans Christian Andersen (often referred to in Scandinavia as H.C. Andersen) was a Danish author and poet. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, Andersen is best remembered for his fairy tales. Andersen's popularity is not limited to children; his stories — called eventyr, or "fairy-tales" — express themes that transcend age and nationality.
Andersen's fairy tales, which have been translated into more than 125 languages, have become culturally embedded in the West's collective consciousness, readily accessible to children, but presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of adversity for mature readers as well. Some of his most famous fairy tales include "The Little Mermaid", "The Ugly Duckling", "The Nightingale", "The Emperor's New Clothes" and many more. His stories have inspired plays, ballets, and both live-action and animated films.
Andersen's fairy tales, which have been translated into more than 125 languages, have become culturally embedded in the West's collective consciousness, readily accessible to children, but presenting lessons of virtue and resilience in the face of adversity for mature readers as well. Some of his most famous fairy tales include "The Little Mermaid", "The Ugly Duckling", "The Nightingale", "The Emperor's New Clothes" and many more. His stories have inspired plays, ballets, and both live-action and animated films.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 21, 2019
The Little Mermaid, illustrated by Chihiro Iwasaki.
For someone who doesn't particularly like the story of The Little Mermaid, I do seem to read it fairly often! From the abbreviated version illustrated by Katie Thamer Treherne, which I found pretty, but unremarkable, to the complete translation, accompanied by the distinctive artwork of noted fairy-tale interpreter, Lisbeth Zwerger, this popular tale has been retold numerous times. The artwork in Michael Hague's edition has always struck me as rather repellent, and oddly ill-suited to the story, whereas Sulamith Wülfing's is the most gorgeous I have seen. It is Charles Santore's retelling, however, that best captures (visually speaking) my own sense of the story.
This edition, illustrated by the marvelous Japanese children's book artist, Chihiro Iwasaki - whose work has been so influential, that there are two museums dedicated to her, in Japan - is the sixth retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's famous tale that I have reviewed in my recent Andersen project, and its chief appeal lies in its dreamy watercolor vistas. Like her work on Andersen's The Red Shoes , Iwasaki's illustrations make wonderful use of color, and convey a sense of almost constant motion, something particularly appropriate in her underwater scenes. I can't say that this is my favorite style of illustration, but it is certainly beautiful, for all that.
The text of this 1984 edition is translated by the prolific Anthea Bell, which I found quite interesting, as she also worked on the subsequent 2004 edition illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger. Unlike that second version, however, which was a faithful and complete translation, this Little Mermaid is somewhat abbreviated, and leaves out a number of details, from the surface tales told by the Little Mermaid's sisters, to the final passage concerning her duties as a spirit of the air. The text and illustrations work well together, so I would say that the editorial decisions here are sound. Still, this edition is long out-of-print, so unless the reader is particularly interested (as am I) in Iwasaki's work, I would advise looking for a more recent retelling.
For someone who doesn't particularly like the story of The Little Mermaid, I do seem to read it fairly often! From the abbreviated version illustrated by Katie Thamer Treherne, which I found pretty, but unremarkable, to the complete translation, accompanied by the distinctive artwork of noted fairy-tale interpreter, Lisbeth Zwerger, this popular tale has been retold numerous times. The artwork in Michael Hague's edition has always struck me as rather repellent, and oddly ill-suited to the story, whereas Sulamith Wülfing's is the most gorgeous I have seen. It is Charles Santore's retelling, however, that best captures (visually speaking) my own sense of the story.
This edition, illustrated by the marvelous Japanese children's book artist, Chihiro Iwasaki - whose work has been so influential, that there are two museums dedicated to her, in Japan - is the sixth retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's famous tale that I have reviewed in my recent Andersen project, and its chief appeal lies in its dreamy watercolor vistas. Like her work on Andersen's The Red Shoes , Iwasaki's illustrations make wonderful use of color, and convey a sense of almost constant motion, something particularly appropriate in her underwater scenes. I can't say that this is my favorite style of illustration, but it is certainly beautiful, for all that.
The text of this 1984 edition is translated by the prolific Anthea Bell, which I found quite interesting, as she also worked on the subsequent 2004 edition illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger. Unlike that second version, however, which was a faithful and complete translation, this Little Mermaid is somewhat abbreviated, and leaves out a number of details, from the surface tales told by the Little Mermaid's sisters, to the final passage concerning her duties as a spirit of the air. The text and illustrations work well together, so I would say that the editorial decisions here are sound. Still, this edition is long out-of-print, so unless the reader is particularly interested (as am I) in Iwasaki's work, I would advise looking for a more recent retelling.
December 18, 2015
"Las sirenas no tienen lagrimas y por eso su sufrimiento es mayor"
Una historia muy triste pero muy bella, del tipo que yo considero de obsesión y no de amor, no sólo obsesión con el príncipe sino con todo el mundo humano, pero eso mismo es lo que hace que el final no pueda ser distinto.
Una historia muy triste pero muy bella, del tipo que yo considero de obsesión y no de amor, no sólo obsesión con el príncipe sino con todo el mundo humano, pero eso mismo es lo que hace que el final no pueda ser distinto.
June 1, 2020
I've never loved the illustrations - I'm very particular about my mermaids. I also wish the text wasn't just in large paragraphs on the page, though I know that is common.
June 15, 2009
I love fairy tales, but I couldn't give this the full five stars because it was so sad. The Little Mermaid rescues the prince from his boat during the storm like in the movie, but when he wakes up, the first girl he sees is a beautiful princess and he thinks she saved him rather than the mermaid.
The mermaid goes to the sea witch, who will give her legs, but to do so, she cuts out her tongue as payment, and every step the mermaid takes it will feel like there are knives cutting her feet. If she doesn't get the prince to fall in love with her, she will die the night after his wedding.
The prince becomes fond of her, but does not fall in love with her. Instead, he is reunited with the beautiful princess and marries her, still thinking that she is the one who saved him. The mermaid's sisters come up from the water holding a knife from the sea witch, saying that if the mermaid kills the prince in his sleep before the sun rises, she will not die.
The mermaid takes the knife, but at the last minute, flings the knife into the sea, and then herself as the sun is rising, where she turns into invisible ocean mist and must spend the next 300 years earning an immortal soul by doing good deeds for others. Then, after 300 years, she will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
I won't say it was disappointing; obviously I wasn't expecting it to be too similar to the Disney movie. But I didn't expect it to be so depressing. I know the mermaid couldn't speak, but why couldn't she have written something letting the prince know that it was her who saved him? In the movie he was hypnotized, so it wouldn't have made a difference. But in the book it could have been a possibility.
And then at the end, she will never see her family again, and still has to earn an immortal soul only to die after she earns it? Jeez. I know not all fairy tales have happy endings, and if that doesn't bother you, it's still a decent story worth reading.
The mermaid goes to the sea witch, who will give her legs, but to do so, she cuts out her tongue as payment, and every step the mermaid takes it will feel like there are knives cutting her feet. If she doesn't get the prince to fall in love with her, she will die the night after his wedding.
The prince becomes fond of her, but does not fall in love with her. Instead, he is reunited with the beautiful princess and marries her, still thinking that she is the one who saved him. The mermaid's sisters come up from the water holding a knife from the sea witch, saying that if the mermaid kills the prince in his sleep before the sun rises, she will not die.
The mermaid takes the knife, but at the last minute, flings the knife into the sea, and then herself as the sun is rising, where she turns into invisible ocean mist and must spend the next 300 years earning an immortal soul by doing good deeds for others. Then, after 300 years, she will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
I won't say it was disappointing; obviously I wasn't expecting it to be too similar to the Disney movie. But I didn't expect it to be so depressing. I know the mermaid couldn't speak, but why couldn't she have written something letting the prince know that it was her who saved him? In the movie he was hypnotized, so it wouldn't have made a difference. But in the book it could have been a possibility.
And then at the end, she will never see her family again, and still has to earn an immortal soul only to die after she earns it? Jeez. I know not all fairy tales have happy endings, and if that doesn't bother you, it's still a decent story worth reading.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 13, 2021
This rating is for the edition adapted by Anthea Bell and illustrated by Chihiro Iwasaki.
December 1, 2015
This is my second traditional tale book review:
The illustrations in the book were done by watercolor, but done so in a way that matched the idea of being underwater. The same way watercolors are used on a coffee filter. The characters drawn have a more defined shape (done with a pen or pencil), but the illustrator still applied the same watercolor technique to the characters (flowy hair, flowy mermaid tail). The artist is Japaneses and her culture is conveyed through the illustration. The characters have a traditional manga appearance.
This version of the "Little Mermaid" follows closely to the traditional tale, but many of the parts are missing. The story follows the Little Mermaid who finds a fascination with the surface and when she turns fifteen saves and falls in love with a shipwrecked young price. She will gain an immortal soul if he marries her. However, if he marries somebody else, the Little Mermaid dies and becomes part of the sea foam. The Little Mermaid trades her fins and tongue for legs, but will suffer endless pain with each step. The prince thinks somebody else saved him and falls in love with another woman. The prince sees the Little Mermaid as his pet, and eventually finds and marries the woman he loves. The Little Mermaid is persuaded to kill the prince by her sisters, but instead dives into the sea foam and because of her sacrifice has the chance to earn an immortal soul by helping and guiding those in need.
As stated earlier, some of the parts are missing from the traditional tale. For example, when the Little Mermaid goes to visit the sea witch, this version leaves out the description of the lair. In the front of the sea witch's home, there are creatures holding bones and other shipwreck artifacts. The idea behind the creatures is that they will grasp onto anything they get ahold of and that item will spend an eternity there. This book also fails to mention all the wondrous things the mermaid sisters see when they turned fifteen and venture to the surface for the first time. Although the story was written by Hans Christian Andersen, it was like this version was solely about the Little Mermaid and the other characters played minor roles.
I would incorporate this book into a fairy tale unit as a means to be exposed to various versions of the same book. I would compare and contrast the different versions. This book can be used with students of all ages if used correctly. I don't think there is anything wrong with using this book with younger students even though some of the content is more depressing than the Disney version children are familiar with.
The illustrations in the book were done by watercolor, but done so in a way that matched the idea of being underwater. The same way watercolors are used on a coffee filter. The characters drawn have a more defined shape (done with a pen or pencil), but the illustrator still applied the same watercolor technique to the characters (flowy hair, flowy mermaid tail). The artist is Japaneses and her culture is conveyed through the illustration. The characters have a traditional manga appearance.
This version of the "Little Mermaid" follows closely to the traditional tale, but many of the parts are missing. The story follows the Little Mermaid who finds a fascination with the surface and when she turns fifteen saves and falls in love with a shipwrecked young price. She will gain an immortal soul if he marries her. However, if he marries somebody else, the Little Mermaid dies and becomes part of the sea foam. The Little Mermaid trades her fins and tongue for legs, but will suffer endless pain with each step. The prince thinks somebody else saved him and falls in love with another woman. The prince sees the Little Mermaid as his pet, and eventually finds and marries the woman he loves. The Little Mermaid is persuaded to kill the prince by her sisters, but instead dives into the sea foam and because of her sacrifice has the chance to earn an immortal soul by helping and guiding those in need.
As stated earlier, some of the parts are missing from the traditional tale. For example, when the Little Mermaid goes to visit the sea witch, this version leaves out the description of the lair. In the front of the sea witch's home, there are creatures holding bones and other shipwreck artifacts. The idea behind the creatures is that they will grasp onto anything they get ahold of and that item will spend an eternity there. This book also fails to mention all the wondrous things the mermaid sisters see when they turned fifteen and venture to the surface for the first time. Although the story was written by Hans Christian Andersen, it was like this version was solely about the Little Mermaid and the other characters played minor roles.
I would incorporate this book into a fairy tale unit as a means to be exposed to various versions of the same book. I would compare and contrast the different versions. This book can be used with students of all ages if used correctly. I don't think there is anything wrong with using this book with younger students even though some of the content is more depressing than the Disney version children are familiar with.
August 1, 2019
.
Quotes:
... it is very deep, too deep for any cable to fathom, and if many steeples were piled on top of one another they would not reach from the bed of the sea to the surface of the water. It is down there that the Mermen live.
... but the roof is made of mussel shells which open and shut with the lapping of the water.
The ground was of the finest sand, but it was of a blue phosphorescent tint. Everything was bathed in a wondrous blue light down there, you might more easily have supposed yourself to be high up in the air, with only the sky above and below you, than that you were at the bottom of the ocean.
You see the grandmother called little birds fish, or the mermaids would not have understood her, as they had never seen a bird.
'When you are fifteen,' said the grandmother, 'you will be allowed to rise up from the sea and sit on the rocks in the moonlight, and look at the big ships sailing by, and you will also see woods and towns.'
There were grotesque dolphins turning somersaults...
They had lovely voices, much clear than any mortal, and when a storm was rising, and they expected ships to be wrecked, they would sing in the most seductive strains of the wonders of the deep, bidding the seafarers have no fear of them. But the sailors could not understand the words...for when the ship sank they were drowned, and only reached the Mermen's palace in death.
...the youngest remained behind quite alone, looking after them as if she must weep; but mermaids have no tears, and so they suffer all the more.
'Why have we no immortal souls?' asked the little mermaid sadly. 'I would give all my three hundred years to be a human being for one day, and afterwards to have a share in the heavenly kingdom."
Prince, 'If ever I had to choose a bride it would sooner be you with your speaking eyes, my sweet, dumb foundling!'
Daughters of the air, 'We fly to the tropics where mankind is the victim of hot and pestilent winds; there we bring cooling breezes.'
Then the little mermaid lifted her transparent arms towards God's sun, and for the first time shed tears.
The little mermaid, 'In three hundred years we shall thus float into Paradise.'
Notes:
Mermen may live longer than Men (300 yrs), but do not have have souls which live on after the body ceases to live (turn into sea foam) unlike humans, who 'rise up to unknown beautiful regions which we shall never see.'.
Only by marrying a human would a merperson become infused with that human's soul.
Quotes:
... it is very deep, too deep for any cable to fathom, and if many steeples were piled on top of one another they would not reach from the bed of the sea to the surface of the water. It is down there that the Mermen live.
... but the roof is made of mussel shells which open and shut with the lapping of the water.
The ground was of the finest sand, but it was of a blue phosphorescent tint. Everything was bathed in a wondrous blue light down there, you might more easily have supposed yourself to be high up in the air, with only the sky above and below you, than that you were at the bottom of the ocean.
You see the grandmother called little birds fish, or the mermaids would not have understood her, as they had never seen a bird.
'When you are fifteen,' said the grandmother, 'you will be allowed to rise up from the sea and sit on the rocks in the moonlight, and look at the big ships sailing by, and you will also see woods and towns.'
There were grotesque dolphins turning somersaults...
They had lovely voices, much clear than any mortal, and when a storm was rising, and they expected ships to be wrecked, they would sing in the most seductive strains of the wonders of the deep, bidding the seafarers have no fear of them. But the sailors could not understand the words...for when the ship sank they were drowned, and only reached the Mermen's palace in death.
...the youngest remained behind quite alone, looking after them as if she must weep; but mermaids have no tears, and so they suffer all the more.
'Why have we no immortal souls?' asked the little mermaid sadly. 'I would give all my three hundred years to be a human being for one day, and afterwards to have a share in the heavenly kingdom."
Prince, 'If ever I had to choose a bride it would sooner be you with your speaking eyes, my sweet, dumb foundling!'
Daughters of the air, 'We fly to the tropics where mankind is the victim of hot and pestilent winds; there we bring cooling breezes.'
Then the little mermaid lifted her transparent arms towards God's sun, and for the first time shed tears.
The little mermaid, 'In three hundred years we shall thus float into Paradise.'
Notes:
Mermen may live longer than Men (300 yrs), but do not have have souls which live on after the body ceases to live (turn into sea foam) unlike humans, who 'rise up to unknown beautiful regions which we shall never see.'.
Only by marrying a human would a merperson become infused with that human's soul.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 14, 2013
Disney made me believe that happy ever after exists but this made it all shattered. My childhood shattered.
This was a very tragic book about my favorite fairytale ever. Little Mermaid. I didn't expect it to be this sad. Plus, I listened to Exo K's Baby Don't Cry (Mermaid's Tears) and it made my mood worse. I feel so broken and hurting. I really just can't express how much I felt sad for Little Mermaid. Her irrevocable love for the prince charming is something commendable and truly heart-fluttering.
THE PRINCE WASNT CHARMING AT ALL I HATE HIM OKAY NO SORRY BUT BUT BUT......
I love this more than I love disney's version. I just love everything original, untainted, unedited and unreversed. In here, happily ever after might be nonexistent but atleast it is more realistic than the ones we used to read.
This was a very tragic book about my favorite fairytale ever. Little Mermaid. I didn't expect it to be this sad. Plus, I listened to Exo K's Baby Don't Cry (Mermaid's Tears) and it made my mood worse. I feel so broken and hurting. I really just can't express how much I felt sad for Little Mermaid. Her irrevocable love for the prince charming is something commendable and truly heart-fluttering.
THE PRINCE WASNT CHARMING AT ALL I HATE HIM OKAY NO SORRY BUT BUT BUT......
I love this more than I love disney's version. I just love everything original, untainted, unedited and unreversed. In here, happily ever after might be nonexistent but atleast it is more realistic than the ones we used to read.
January 13, 2021
It’s always interesting to visit a fairy tale as an adult, especially when it’s the original story (or close to it).
I have to say, The Little Mermaid is quite disturbing. The illustrations in this copy aren’t my taste either. To each their own though
I have to say, The Little Mermaid is quite disturbing. The illustrations in this copy aren’t my taste either. To each their own though
December 23, 2010
Wonderful illustrations, and ones that aren't commonly done, such as the mermaid holding the bride's train on the wedding day.
July 8, 2012
The story is divine and the artwork is just wonderful!
September 27, 2013
HCA's original mermaid tale--NOT your well-known Disney movie. The heroine doesn't always win the heart of the prince.
August 8, 2017
very pretty watercolour illustrations, same story as always
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews