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A retelling of the Hans Christian Andersen story, with new illustrations.The story of a one-legged tin soldier who loves a paper ballerina from afar is "beautifully set in a wintry [Copenhagen] of a hundred years ago. A handsomely designed book that respects the integrity of a favorite tale while giving it a fresh new interpretation." —K. "A terrific story, well told and beautifully illustrated." —BL. "The art illuminates the story in ways to which the simple language cannot aspire." —NYT. 1992 Books for Youth Editors' Choices (BL)
Steadfast Tin Soldier FROM OUR EDITORS From the story told by Hans Christian Andersen, this is the tale of a little boy's intrepid one-legged tin soldier and the unimaginable adventures he encounters when he happens to fall out a window -- and falls in love with a beautiful dancer. Wonderfully illustrated in full color. 8 3/4" x 12". ANNOTATION The perilous adventure of a toy soldier who loves a paper dancing girl culminates in tragedy for both of them.
FROM THE PUBLISHER A retelling of the Hans Christian Andersen story, with new illustrations.The story of a one-legged tin soldier who loves a paper ballerina from afar is "beautifully set in a wintry [Copenhagen] of a hundred years ago. A handsomely designed book that respects the integrity of a favorite tale while giving it a fresh new interpretation." —K. "A terrific story, well told and beautifully illustrated." —BL. "The art illuminates the story in ways to which the simple language cannot aspire." —NYT. 1992 Books for Youth Editors' Choices (BL)
FROM THE CRITICS Children's Literature - Marilyn Courtot Marcellino beautifully illustrates this tale of the brave tin soldier who falls in love with a paper ballerina. The soldier survives an incredible adventure only to be tossed in to the fire when he returns home. As he began to melt, the paper ballerina who he loves so desperately flies across room and joins him in the blaze. All that remained was a lump of tin in the shape of a heart and a burned spangle from the ballerina. The book was selected as one of the Ten Best Picture Books of the Year by the New York Times and one of the best by Booklist. 1997 (orig.
School Library Journal Gr 1-3-- Either the hegemony of the Disney house, or the reluctance of an artist to sign rough drafts, has prevented any individual from being identified or credited for the ``illustrations from the Disney Archives'' used here. Instead of finished stills, the pictures are for the most part crude chalk sketches. The unattractive dancer recalls a Barbie prototype, and the flat-faced soldier is characterless. The pictures seem to have been composed for a storyboard, not a book. The text has been significantly altered, with small items added to fit the Disneyfied story: cliche (``. . . light at the end of the tunnel''), the imp made responsible for the soldier's misadventures, and a quite un-Andersenian ``Little Engine'' optimism (``I think it's getting easier each time I try . . .''). Several other editions are in print: try Samantha Easton's small-format version, illustrated by Michael Montgomery (Andrews & McMeel, 1991). --Patricia Dooley, Univ . of Washington, Seattle
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