Ruth B. Bottigheimer

I adore this book. Bottigheimer carefuly looks at the various editions of the Grimms' tales to see how the Grimms edited the stories to fit their particular moral vision. The original edition was intended for folklore scholars, and had the tales in all their violent and sometimes strange glory. However, when editions were intended for children, the boys consistently were rewarded for bold behavior while girls were punished for it. This is a scholarly book, but one that I think is accessible to anyone with an interest in folklore, fairy tales, and gender issues.… (more)