Somehow over the years, I missed reading The Little Mermaid, so I was glad to read this lovely edition. I knew about some of the differences between the Disney version and the original, mainly the part where she doesn't marry the prince and turns into sea foam. I didn't know about what happens after that, which I won't spoil here for anyone else who hasn't read it. I enjoyed the story, though I will accuse Anderson of using the "instalove" trope heavily lol! I give him credit for not going with a happy ending, however, but instead giving us an ending that is complex- while she didn't get entirely what she wanted, she's offered a way to get part of her wishes, which is a pretty good deal, if you think about it. The illustration are lovely, and add a nice element to the story.
This edition also includes The True-Hearted Tin Soldier (aka The Steadfast Tin Soldier), which honestly, I've never cared for. It's just so hopeless and sad! There are no illustrations for this story, and I'm really not sure why it was included.

#TheLittleMermaid #NetGalley

Such a cute classic tale. Loved the illustrations for this one but would have liked to see a few more for this one.

"Far out at sea, the water is as blue as cornflower petals and as clear as the purest glass."  So begins this version/translation of the well known fairy tale.  It is nicely told here.  The text is accompanied by pen and ink drawings that enhance the text.  This Hans Christian Anderson tale is the basis for the Disney movie but is not the same.  Read this for yourself or with a child that you know. 

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to reread this beautifully written story.  All opinions are my own.

This book was totally not what I was expecting. I guess growing up to the Disney Little Mermaid made me not so accepting of this version.

I was left confused as to who the intended audience is for this republishing of Anderson's classic. The illustrations were too simple to appeal to younger readers and didn't add enough to warrant repurchasing this text for our collection.

Yas please I love this version... its the only version for me because Disney did it dirty because they wanted it kid friendly!

A simple, elegant and not too graphic retelling of this old fairy tale. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It paints the picture of the Mermaid princesses and their underwater world in a way which will appeal to a young reader and not scare them too much. It is not the Disney version and is truer to the real tale, but in a gentle way. Would make a lovely gift.


There was a bonus of a second tale - The True-Hearted Tin Solider.

A few black and white drawn illustrations to go along with the story by Andersen. Does include a very short story from him. Classic tale of the little mermaid - not your Disney version. Nicely set up and formatted.

Believe it or not this book started of really well and I was really enjoying it. I was loving how this book gave so much insight on The Little Mermaids life that you never got to see in the Disney adaptation. There was some back story with her sisters and you got to see how she where her desire to the Land and humans came from and I was loving it. This book also has some darker elements to it, making me think of the original Brothers Grimm, with the removal of tongues and so forth.


I then got to a certain point and this book hit a wall with me and then continually went downwards. It made me realise when this book was originally written, the era and how women would have been treated. I’m not a feminist, but I just didn’t like it and wouldn’t read this or encourage my nieces to read this, especially as The Little Mermaid is her favourite Disney movie. The lengths that she went to and the pain that she suffered for this man that she saved and loved and for her dreams and she wasn’t treated that well. In fact, with quotes such as;


“The Prince declared that she must stay with him always, and she was allowed to sleep outside his door on a velvet pillow.”
and

““You are the dearest of them all,” the Prince said, “because you have the truest heart and show the most devotion to me.””


It just showed a submissive and complete devotion of the era this was written in and just continued to go downhill. It showed no care or true affection, but simply as an object, as she was the one who showed the most devotion towards him. Because that's what a Prince needs, more devotion. I felt my childhood slip away and get replaced with disgust. I'm pretty confident that throughout the entirety of the book, her name wasn't mentioned once either, but neither was the Princes'.


The ending is different to the Disney adaptation and I’m not going to spoil that for anyone, but on finishing this book, I was left just thinking what have I just read! It made me rethink one of my favourite Disney films and made me feel disgusted. The only redeemable things about it were the beginning and how it explained the back story, the illustrations, plus there was an additional story of The True Hearted Tin Solder at the back (in my Copy anyways). I don’t recommend this at all.
This particular edition is going to be released March 2020

I grown up with Hans Christian Andersen's stories so when I saw this book I had to read it. The little mermaid is a beautiful but sad story, but I loved to reread it. The illustrations are really beautiful but there are not so many of them. And I'm glad that at the end you can find the story of The True-Hearted Tin Soldier as a bonus.
Everybody should read Hans Christian Andersen's stories from little ones to adults.

I am apparently not a fan of Anderson's writing. Gosh, I did not like his writing style at all. I only skimmed through the book as I did not want to DNF a book that has so few pages. Many people describe his writing as poetic, but I just think it's crap. There's no detail, no interesting dialogue, just she did this and he did that and then this happened... I really don't like it when a book is written this way.

The illustrations in this book were cute, more detailed then the book will be be, that's for sure 😂

The characters were all very flat and annoying. I definitely prefer the Disney versions, at least there's some fire in the Little Mermaid in the Disney story and is the prince not such an ass.

It's very clear I did not like Anderson's version of the classic tale. I'll just keep watching the Disney version and forget all about this book.

This is a beautifully illustrated new translation of The Little Mermaid from the original by Hans Christian Anderson. The descriptive language is beautiful and evocative, and the black and white illustrations are stunning with the mermaids picked out in black ink whilst the surroundings are mostly detailed outline drawings.
Deep in the sea stands the idyllic castle of the Sea King where he lives with his six daughters and their Grandmother. His youngest daughter’s favourite possession is a marble statue of a handsome boy; she yearns to join the human world, yet she is not allowed up to the surface until she is 15.
When her fifteenth birthday finally arrives, she sees a young Prince celebrating his birthday. A sudden storm leads to her rescuing the Prince as his ship is destroyed but, of course, he doesn’t know who his saviour is, which causes heartbreak later.
The young mermaid is so determined to be with the Prince and gain an immortal soul that she seeks the help of the terrifying Sea Witch who takes her voice and gives her a potion that will make her human. If she cannot make the Prince fall in love with her, she will be doomed to death …
The youngest mermaid is a sympathetically drawn character who yearns for both human love and an immortal soul. When given the opportunity to save herself, she is not prepared to sacrifice her love which leads to a re-awakening after facing terrible hardship and disappointment. This was not an ending I was expecting, but it felt satisfying.
This is certainly not the Disney version of the story, but it is a rich re-telling which I really enjoyed.

Enjoyed finally reading the little mermaid. The ending was unexpected. I really liked the illustrations .

This was a lovely little version of The Little Mermaid with some beautiful illustrations.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC.

I 100% am writing this post while listening to The Little Mermaid soundtrack by the way.

Since the announcement of the live action The Little Mermaid film the mermaid mania has kicked it up 100 fold. And it’s already been a hype storm. My daughter loves swimming and since she was young me and my best friend have referred to her as our little mermaid. The number one item on her Christmas list to Santa this year is a mermaid swim suit complete with tail.

I was born in 1989, the year TLM came out and remember the movie being one of my favorites as a child and Ariel being THE BEST PRINCESS. What’s not to love about a feisty, headstrong young girl who is different and goes after what she wants? I have never until yesterday read the original story however. Brothers Grimm and retellings yes but never Hans Christian Andersen’s.

THAT CHANGES NOW MY GUPPIES

Six sisters who live in the depths of the ocean and each of them long to see what lies above them. No more so than the youngest however.

When she does she immediately falls in love, with the sights of the world and a prince who is celebrating his 16th birthday and she knows what she wants to do no matter the price, no matter what it means to her future.

This is a fairy tale that of course is darker than what we are told as children. I guess there’s technically a good ending, it’s NOTHING like the Disney ending that’s for sure. Am I happy at the resolution? Hell no. But that’s fairy tales for you. They’re full of lessons and what not which girl, I guess. Just give us the meaningless romance and let us be HAPPY. The world is cruel enough.

The artwork in here in simple but beautiful. It adds depth to the story and lessens the harshness quite a bit which is nice!

And yes, I am still playing The Little Mermaid soundtrack. Don’t judge.

I'd only watched movie versions of "The Little Mermaid" so far, so I was interested to see what the original source material was like.

I loved the writing style but, as with all short stories, I felt that something was missing. Still, this is a beautiful fairytale that I'm happy to have read.

The second story in this edition wasn't to my taste and felt a little disappointing after reading "The Little Mermaid".

I have always loved the little mermaid.
When I was young and I read the book for the first time, I remember being so disappointed that the mermaid (who was still Ariel to me) did not end up with the prince.

It is always nice to revisit stories from your childhood. Hans Christian Andersen, while often morbid tells great stories.

The Steadfast Tin Soldier was always one of my favourite stories from Hans Christian Anderson. This accompanied by The Little Mermaid makes a lovely volume for a gift to a child. Both stories are well translated and surprisingly more gripping than I had remembered. Having been lulled by the Disney version of The Little Mermaid it may come as a shock to some readers that the original version does not have the same happy ending as the film! Reading such lively stories with children is a great boost to a child’s imagination and creativity and as an older reader I thoroughly enjoyed becoming reacquainted with these classic tales. As no illustrations were available I am unable to comment on these.

My thanks to Steerforth Press and Netgalley for allowing me access to this digital preview version in return for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy of this book. I received this in exchange for my honest review. Disney's The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie growing up. I'm sure I watched it over a million times and at one point I could have recited it by heart. I just had to review this version as well. This book is directed at a middle school reader level. There is a few pictures, just enough to keep a child interested. Not too many where it would become a distraction. I enjoyed this version of The Little Mermaid. There is a lot of commentary amongst the sisters so that different angle is cool to see.

ARC provided by publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Little Mermaid was my favourite film growing up. It was where my love of disney started. I love Little Mermaid Retellings and I think we all owe Hans Christian Anderson so much. Anyway I digress.

The illustrations are lovely, it is my hope there will be more in the final release however they add a great dimension to the story. This retelling and translation is good and something I think everyone should read if they are a fan of The Little Mermaid young, old and new fans alike.

Nice quick enjoyable read.