The Twelve Dancing Princesses" (also "The Worn-Out Dancing Shoes" or "The Shoes that were Danced to Pieces" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in Grimm's Fairy Tales in 1815 (KHM 133). Did you know our Australian illustrator Anna Walker illustrated this classic fairy tale? See below for the cover.
Sometimes a memory or a fragment of a memory can be the impetus for a moving personal story. This book is based on the author's own childhood memory of visiting the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival in China. Angie Cui writes her story in both English and simplified Chinese.
The character I liked most in this story is the grandfather - he is brave enough to go on a 500 metre slide but not so sure about riding on the Ferris wheel. I also loved the way he shared delicious sweet treats with his granddaughter and her cousin. There is a joy also in this story where we witness the shared experience of a child with their grandfather and the special memories they are creating.
The 210-meter-high Snowflake Ferries Wheel is absolutely another crowd favorites. A 20-minute ride treats you to breathtaking panoramic views of the entire Ice and Snow World in winter—especially spectacular at sunset and night. In summer, you'll be greeted by the lush, green wetlands lining both sides of the Songhua River.
You can see the giant Ferris Wheel in this photo:
I learnt a few new food names in this book: Madieer ice cream; and tanghulu (candied hawthorns, grapes, strawberries or pineapple).
Tanghulu are candied fruits popular in China as street food that combine the natural beauty of fresh fruit with a sweet sugar coating. It is carried by a bamboo stick or skewer. You can find it everywhere on the street, especially on cold winter days near the Chinese New Year. Typically Tanghuluis are made with hawthorn berries, which is a hard and sour fruit, but you can make Tanghulu with other favorite fruits.
This book could also be a jumping off point if you are talking about China - the story mentions The Great Wall and the Forbidden City and of course you will want to find a map so you can locate Harbin in Northern China.
Anna Wilson is sure to have enjoyed exploring the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival. There are so many fabulous photos you can search for showing the ice sculptures and the lights.
The Harbin Ice and Snow World is the largest ice and snow theme park in the world, officially certified by Guinness World Records. ... The park features over 2,000 ice and snow sculptures that blend cultural heritage with immersive tech-light effects, surpassing the monotonous displays found in most other countries. ... the Harbin Ice and Snow World has opened for 27 consecutive years. Each year, it builds delicate ice and snow sculptures under different themes. Visitors can marvel at the dazzling night views illuminated by colorful lights, participate in winter sports, snow shows, and other unique activities. To ensure a cozy and comfortable experience even in the bone-chilling cold, heated rest areas and warm food halls are readily available across the park. Source
This is a new book which will be released tomorrow. Thank you to UQP for my advance copy. Here are the teachers notes for The Festival of Ice and Snow (but I do suggest you and your young reading companion or class or library group plan to read and enjoy this book before you share some of the teaching idea ideas which analyse the page designs, word choices and illustrations).
You will recognise the name Angie Cui from her book My Mum is a Bird. It was a CBCA 2026 Notable title but I am sorry to say it is a book that just didn't resonate with me.
I previously talked about these books illustrated by Anna Wilson. I thought she was from the UK but now I discover she lives in Castlemaine, Victoria:
Thinking about Hansel and Gretel I always have an image of that amazing house in my mind. I also love the way it is Gretel who is able to outsmart the witch. Take a look at what Slap Happy Larry has to say about the gingerbread house. If you want to take an even deeper dive into the symbolism and meanings in Hansel and Gretel take a look here.
When you hear the word Fairy Tale what do you think of?
Rumpelstiltskin; Three Billy goats; Wild Swans; Cinderella; Beauty and the beast; Sleeping Beauty; Rapunzel; Twelve dancing princesses; Rapunzel; The Elves and the shoemaker; The Frog Prince; Hansel and Gretel; Puss in boots; Jack and the Beanstalk; Goldilocks.
My plan is to share picture book editions of fairy tales over the coming days.
Unpacking my heading: Essential - kids need to hear these many times; and Fairy Tales - I am limiting this discussion to the European tradition:
At some future date this topic will be the focus of a new presentation from IBBY Australia.
This set of posts will mainly consist of book covers for each fairy tale.
Works by the Grimm Brothers (Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm)
Charles Perrault
Beauty and the Beast
Joseph Jacobs
"There was once a tiny little man who lived in an old carboard shoe box. He was happy there."
But then the rain comes and it rains so much his little house is destroyed. So, he sets off to find a new home. He tries living with a bird in a tree but alas he falls out. He tries living in a glass jar with a frog (our Frog is Frog character) but alas it is much too hot. He joins a rabbit in his cosy burrow but alas when thirteen baby rabbits arrive it is way too crowded. Then he meets a Little Woman picking apples and she offers him the perfect home and the perfect place for a party with all of his new friends.
Little Man finds a Home was published in 1983 under the title Klein-Mannchen hat kein Haus.
This book is such a special one to have found at a recent charity book fair. You might already know I am a huge fan of the Frog is Frog series by Max Velthuijs. When I read Little Man finds a Home, I saw the familiar little frog in his striking boardshorts - could this book have been written before the famous series? I went hunting and discovered that YES that is how we come to have Frog.
And I think there were other books in this original series, Klein Mannetje helpt een vriend (Little Man helps find a friend); Klein-Mannetje vindt het geluk (Little Man finds happiness); Klein-Mannetje heeft geen huis (Little Man has no House); Klein Männchen und das Glück: Drei liebenswerte Geschichten (Little Man and Happiness - three stories).
I read this on the IBBY International page - Max Velthuijus won the IBBY Hans Christian Andersen Medal in 2004. He sadly died in 2005 aged 81.
Frog started as a secondary character in the books about ‘Klein-Mannetje’ (Klein-Männchen), but beginning with Kikker is verliefd (Frog in Love, 1989 Andersen Press, London) he became a character of his own, with his own feelings and thoughts. The stories about Frog and his friends contain elements of fairy tale and fable. Just like in a traditional fable there is a message in his books but presented as a general and universal truth. Not a finger raised in warning. Velthuijs doesn’t warn his readers he shows them how the world is organized and how people react. Without closing his eyes to how people can treat others unjustly, he always comes with a positive solution for the dilemmas of Frog and his friends.
In his Frog books Velthuijs brings existential themes/subjects in words and pictures back to their essence. Kikker en het vogeltje (Frog and the Birdsong) is a beautifully simple account of the mystery of death and the need to celebrate the joys of being alive. This complex and challenging idea is presented with strong, dramatic pictures. Kikker en de Vreemdeling (Frog and the Stranger) deserves a special mention for the way this story deals with prejudice and fear for outsiders, racism and mutual understanding. Lovesickness is the central theme in Kikker is verliefd (Frog in love); solidarity in Kikker in de kou (Frog in Winter); and fear in Kikker is bang (Frog is frightened).
The animals in the picture books are, as Velthuijs said, ‘a kind of children of me, they have their own personality in which there is always a part of myself.’ Frog is childlike wide-eyed, Pig is home-loving, Hare is the intellectual one who always has a thoughtful judgement and Rat is an adventurer, perhaps the most enterprising animal in the Frog books. All Velthuijs’ stories are suffused with a sense of security, and the moral of each story is presented with gentle humour. It is this humour and security – in words and pictures, which the Frog books show to perfection.
There will also be a meal, a door (that leads to the world), a song, a plane, a bright blue bug, an interesting smell, a stone, or you might ride a whale.
"Tomorrow most likely will be a great day because you are in it and Stu is okay."
This book is sadly out of print (published in 2019) but you might find a copy in a library - I sure hope you do! Here is the Kirkus review. See more pages inside this book here.
You could share Tomorrow Most Likely as a bedtime read aloud in your family or you could use it as a writing idea with a group of older students after a discussion about optimism!
My friend spied this treasure at a recent charity book sale - Lane Smith - I am a huge fan and Dave Eggers - his book for middle grade readers The Eyes and the Impossible is a book that still lingers with me over three years since I read it.
Companion book:
