FROM THE PUBLISHER

Hans Christian Anderson was born in the slums of Odense, Denmark. His parents were hardworking, and Hans received little formal education, but his childhood was his opening to the world of folklore and fairy tales. Much of his work depicts characters who gain happiness in life after suffering and conflicts and many of his childhood experiences inspired his most famous tales, such as The Ugly Duckling and The Little Mermaid.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

This unconventional biography offers an impressionistic series of vignettes roughly based on seminal events from Andersen's childhood through to the point at which he leaves home at 14. But the book unfortunately falls short of placing Andersen's significance as a literary figure into a historical context for young readers. Hesse waits until the afterword, for instance, to mention that her subject grows up to be a famous writer, and many scenes teeter on melodrama. Describing the boy's experience visiting a lunatic hospital, the author writes, "He knew he shouldn't stop in this place where madness raced like blood through the veins of the walls, but he couldn't help himself." Hinting at some unnamed, future accomplishment, Hesse says the boy "carried his genius like a slender bottle of champagne, its silent fizz stopped up, but determined." The tightly constructed narrative brims with other more memorable images, yet only readers already familiar with the topic will understand the frequent, oblique references to Andersen's later works. Blegvad (who himself has translated Andersen's works in Twelve Tales) creates sometimes comical pen-and-inks with watercolor wash that depict a gawky hero reminiscent of Ichabod Crane, and the occasional town scenes and landscapes resemble enchanting, jewel-bright etchings. Although it is biographical, the book reads more like a novel about an awkward and sensitive child who believes he will one day be famous. Ages 7-10. (Oct.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

Gr 2-4-Hesse uses evocative images and metaphors that parallel Andersen's own writing style to convey some of the formative childhood experiences that appear so poignantly in his fairy tales. Hans Christian was the ugly duckling, and his father was a steadfast soldier in Napoleon's army. When the boy's friendly overtures to a girl in his school were rejected, his grandmother "knew how to melt the frost in his young heart." Andersen's youthful "soaring soprano" voice undoubtedly contributed to his story about the nightingale. Children who read this fairy-talelike biography, thankfully without invented dialogue, will gain compassion for the author and hopefully a sense of the similarities between his life and his work. Blegvad's bucolic illustrations of ponds, swans, and cottages are done in soft, warm, and sunny colors, and offer lovely images of Denmark in the early 1800s. Primary-grade children will enjoy reading this biography; for older readers who need more comprehensive information suggest Beth Wagner Brust's excellent The Amazing Paper Cuttings of Hans Christian Andersen (Houghton, 1994), which is not only rich in detail, but also indexed and well documented.-Kirsten Cutler, Sonoma Library, CA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

"The Ugly Duckling" was the story of Andersen's life. Unattractive as a boy and subjected to teasing and taunting, he grew up to be a fabulously accomplished writer, courted by royalty and befriended by literary luminaries of his time. "First you have a terribly hard time, and then you become famous," he said. This volume, a fitting celebration of the bicentennial of Andersen's birth, is a perfect match of evocative, poetic text and sumptuous watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations. Brief chapters, each page with an illustration, illustrate pivotal moments in the author's life. The text ends as Andersen leaves Odense, Denmark, for Copenhagen, the end of one story of his life and the beginning of another. This will be a natural for reading aloud when introducing children to his stories. A perfect gem. (afterword, bibliography, illustrator's note) (Nonfiction. 7-10)