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Charles Perrault (1628–1703)

Author of Puss in Boots

793+ Works 7,544 Members 234 Reviews 11 Favorited

About the Author

Charles Perrault was born in Paris on January 12, 1628. He was the son of an upper-class burgeois family and attended the best schools, becoming a lawyer in 1651. After being a lawyer for some time, he was appointed chief clerk in the king's building, superintendent's office in 1664. While there, show more he induced Colbert to establish a fund called Liste des Bienfaits du Roi, to give pensions to writers and savants not only in France but in Europe. He took part in the creation of the Academy of Sciences as well as the restoration of the Academy of Painting. When the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres was founded by Colbert in 1663, Perrault was made secretary for life. Having written but a few popular poems, he was elected to the French Academy in 1671, and on the day of his inauguration he invited the public to be admitted to the meeting, a privilege that has ever since been continued. Perrault laid the foundations for a new literary genre, the fairy tale, with his works derived from pre-existing folk tales. The best known of his tales include Le Petit Chaperon rouge (Little Red Riding Hood), Cendrillon (Cinderella), Le Chat Botté (Puss in Boots), La Belle au bois dormant (The Sleeping Beauty) and La Barbe bleue (Bluebeard). His stories continue to be printed and have been adapted to opera, ballet (for example, Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty), theatre, and film. He also wrote Parallèles des Anciens et des Modernes (the Parallels between the Ancients and the Moderns), from 1688 to 1697, which compared the authors of antiquity unfavorably to more modern writers, and caused a debate that lasted for years. Charles Perrault died on May 16, 1703. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Disambiguation Notice:

Strictly C. Perrault could also refer to Claude Perrault, so it may have to be separated out at some stage.

Image credit: wikimedia commons

Series

Works by Charles Perrault

Puss in Boots (1697) — Author — 1,458 copies
Cinderella (1697) 519 copies
Contes (1694) 426 copies
The Sleeping Beauty (1697) 282 copies
Cinderella (retold by Amy Ehrlich) (1697) — Author — 253 copies
Contes de ma mère l'Oye (1697) 100 copies
Hop-o'-My-Thumb (1697) 94 copies
The Three Wishes (1873) 76 copies
Little Red Riding Hood (1966) 51 copies
Contes des fées (1850) 39 copies
Cuentos de Perrault (1900) 37 copies
Peau d'Âne (1694) 37 copies
Little Red Riding Hood (2002) 30 copies
Les fées (2009) 26 copies
Riquete el del Copete (1990) 23 copies
Chapeuzinho Vermelho (2012) 19 copies
Perrault's Fairy Tales (2003) 19 copies
Perrault's Fairy Tales (2015) 17 copies
Classic fairy tales (1993) 16 copies
La Cenicienta (1984) 15 copies
Cuentos de hadas (1983) 14 copies
The Vindication of Wives (1954) 13 copies
Bluebeard and Other Fairy Tales (1964) — Author — 13 copies
Cuentos (1998) 13 copies
Contes et fables (2001) 12 copies
Le Petit Chaperon rouge (2002) 11 copies
Old-Time Stories (1921) 11 copies
Tales of Passed Times (2010) 11 copies
El gato con botas (2005) 10 copies
Tales from Perrault (1996) 9 copies
Bajki (1988) 7 copies
Sämtliche Märchen. (1986) 7 copies
Love and Be Wise (1988) 7 copies
Contes du temps passé (1944) 7 copies
Le petit chaperon rouge (2007) 7 copies
Neuf contes (2011) 6 copies
Rotkäppchen (1998) 6 copies
Contos de Perrault (2010) 6 copies
Los cuentos de Perrault (1987) 6 copies
Barbe-Bleue (2010) 6 copies
Cuentos completos (2016) 6 copies
The Tales of Mother Goose (2006) 6 copies
Rínxols d'Or (1900) 5 copies
La Cenicienta (1984) 5 copies
Contos (2010) 5 copies
Les contes (1979) 5 copies
I racconti di Mamma Oca (1996) 5 copies
Muinasjutud 5 copies
Perrault (1991) 4 copies
O Pequeno Polegar (1996) 4 copies
Cinderella Pupil's Book (2004) 4 copies
Fairy Tales 4 copies
The Story of Blue-Beard (2014) 4 copies
GATO CON BOTAS, EL / PD. (2014) 4 copies
Cuentos universales (2006) 4 copies
Cuentos de antaño (1978) 4 copies
La Barbe bleue (2014) 4 copies
Peau-d'Âne 4 copies
The Greatest Fairy Tales (2018) 4 copies
Contos E Fabulas (2009) 3 copies
Ogres et Ogresses (2006) 3 copies
Little Red Riding Hood (2014) 3 copies
Francouzské pohádky (1990) 3 copies
Perrault Doré (2016) — Author — 3 copies
Fiabe (2002) 3 copies
Contes en prose (2004) 3 copies
The Best Book of Fairy Tales (1989) — Contributor — 3 copies
Gåsmors sagor 3 copies
Perrault's Fairy Tales (1993) 3 copies
Cele mai frumoase povesti (2009) 3 copies
Ze Chumaco (2000) 3 copies
Barbe-Bleue (2004) 3 copies
Tutte le fiabe (2011) 3 copies
Contes (1997) 3 copies
Bluebeard 3 copies
Bluebeard (1986) 3 copies
Contes (2017) 3 copies
Pasaku Pasaulē 3 copies
Beauty And The Beast (2015) 3 copies
Le Petit Chaperon rouge (2002) 2 copies
Fabulae Gallicae (2021) 2 copies
My Book of Cinderella (1960) 2 copies
Tuhkimo (1981) 2 copies
Fiabe. Ediz. illustrata (2017) 2 copies
En Barba Blava (2002) 2 copies
Barba Azul (1991) 2 copies
Barba azul (2002) 2 copies
Pell d'ase (2004) 2 copies
Blue Beard (Illustrated) (2011) 2 copies
Diamonds and Toads (2015) 2 copies
Cuentos de Perrault (2014) 2 copies
Gåsmors sagor 2 copies
Caperucita Roja (1995) 2 copies
ZÉ CHUMAÇO 2 copies
Contes de fades (1998) 2 copies
RÍNXOLS D'OR (2004) 2 copies
French Fairy Tales (1972) 2 copies
Csizmás Kandúr (1991) 2 copies
Cinderela (2000) 2 copies
Zé Chumaço 2 copies
Märchen aus alter Zeit (1976) 2 copies
Η σταχτοπούτα (2011) 2 copies
Pollicino. Con CD Audio (2011) 2 copies
Caperucita roja (2010) 2 copies
Sprookjes (1979) 2 copies
Cinderella Zolushka (2008) 2 copies
Cuentos de Perrault (2010) 2 copies
Il libro delle fate (1995) 2 copies
Le chat botté (2012) 2 copies
I racconti di Mamma Oca (1995) 2 copies
Perraulten ipuinak (1995) 2 copies
Contes (2013) 2 copies
Zaubermärchen (1993) 2 copies
Le petit Chaperon Rouge (1997) 2 copies
27. La Caputxeta Vermella (1991) 2 copies
Les plus beaux contes (2001) 2 copies
LES CONTES. (1902) 1 copy
Six Contes CD (2009) 1 copy
Klein Duimpje (1983) 1 copy
Punamütsike 1 copy
Сказки (2010) 1 copy
Gata Borralheira (2014) 1 copy
Kot v sapogah (2013) 1 copy
Barba Azul 1 copy
Cinderella (1977) 1 copy
Le Favole 1 copy
Poddigheddu (1997) 1 copy
El gato con botas (1901) 1 copy
Bajke 1 copy
La Caputxeta vermella (2010) 1 copy
Blue Beard 1 copy
Blaubart 1 copy
Barbe-Bleue 1 copy
Barbazul 1 copy
Popeliushka 1 copy
Sharl Perro. Skazki (2001) 1 copy
BARBAZUL 1 copy
Barba Azul 1 copy
Pollicino 1 copy
Blue Beard 1 copy
Riquet cel Motat (2001) 1 copy
Barbablu 1 copy
Barbazul 1 copy
Barbablu 1 copy
Blue Beard 1 copy
Barbe-Bleue 1 copy
O BARBA AZUL 1 copy
Barbe-Bleue 1 copy
Fiabe 1 copy
Cuentos de Perrault (1992) 1 copy
Törnrosa (1972) 1 copy
Riquet à la houppe (1697) 1 copy
Sprookjes van vroeger (1986) 1 copy
Pelle d'asino (2012) 1 copy
Donkeyskin 1 copy
De gelaarsde kat (1999) 1 copy
Hanhiemon satuja (1999) 1 copy
Märchen (1992) 1 copy
Famous Fairy Tales (1959) 1 copy
La ventafocs (1984) 1 copy
Novelle 1 copy
Gatto Con Gli Stivali (1998) 1 copy
Oeuvres 1 copy
Blue Beard (1984) 1 copy
Perrault 1 copy
Punahilkka 1 copy
Contes (1987) 1 copy
Czerwony Kapturek (1998) 1 copy
Cuentos de Mamá Oca (1990) 1 copy
Contes En Images (1993) 1 copy
Fiabe Classiche (2001) 1 copy
O gato das botas (2004) 1 copy
Snehvide 1 copy
Barbablù (2015) 1 copy
Aschenputtel (2016) 1 copy
Aschenputtel (1984) 1 copy
Aschenputtel [VHS] (1992) 1 copy
Morals 1 copy
Peau dÂne 1 copy
Contes (1977) 1 copy
Le petit poucet (2017) 1 copy
Uyuyan Guzel (2015) 1 copy
ZOPETE 1 copy
Les contes 1 copy
Prinsessa Ruusunen (1998) 1 copy
Blauwbaard 1 copy
El petit polzet (1994) 1 copy
35. LA VENTAFOCS (2018) 1 copy

Associated Works

The Classic Fairy Tales [Norton Critical Edition] (1998) — Contributor — 989 copies
Cinderella [1950 film] (1950) — Original story — 984 copies
Sleeping Beauty [1959 film] (1959) — Original Story — 940 copies
Maleficent [2014 live action film] (2014) — Original Story — 528 copies
Cinderella [2015 film] (2015) — Original story — 408 copies
A Child's Book of Stories (1986) — Contributor — 355 copies
Tasha Tudor Book of Fairy Tales (1961) — Contributor — 299 copies
The Golden Treasury of Children's Literature Set (1961) — Contributor — 207 copies
QPB Illustrated Treasury of Classic Fairy Tales (2003) — Contributor — 150 copies
The Fairy Tales (2005) — some editions — 149 copies
The Twelve Dancing Princesses, and Other Fairy Tales (1964) — Contributor — 143 copies
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil [2019 film] (2019) — Original story — 136 copies
Witches' Brew (2002) — Contributor — 122 copies
The Land of Stories: A Treasury of Classic Fairy Tales (2016) — Contributor — 117 copies
Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella [1997 TV movie] (1997) — Original story — 93 copies
Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella [1965 TV movie] (1965) — Original story — 85 copies
Best in Children's Books 30 (1960) 84 copies
Best in Children's Books 08 (1958) 81 copies
Classic Fairy Tales to Read Aloud (1996) — Contributor — 76 copies
Wolf's Complete Book of Terror (1979) — Contributor — 73 copies
Best in Children's Books 15 (1960) 67 copies
The Mammoth Book of Fairy Tales (1997) — Contributor — 62 copies
The Kingfisher Treasury of Princess Stories (2001) — Contributor — 51 copies
Favourite Tales: Puss in Boots (1993) — Orig Text, some editions — 47 copies
The Moons at Your Door (2016) — Contributor — 41 copies
Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella [1957 TV movie] (1957) — Oroginal story — 40 copies
Cinderella (Ladybird Favourite Tales) (1993) — Original story — 28 copies
Donkey Skin [1970 film] (2005) — Original story — 20 copies
Favorite Animal Stories (1987) — Contributor — 11 copies
Favourite Scary Stories from Graveside Al (1996) — Contributor — 11 copies
In their Shoes: Fairy Tales and Folktales (2016) — Contributor — 9 copies
Little Red Riding Hood (Tell tales) (1989) — some editions — 8 copies
Puss in Boots (2014) — Author — 7 copies
Tom Thumb [2001 film] (2001) — Novel — 6 copies
A Treasury of Stories And Rhymes (1999) — Contributor — 6 copies
Peau d'âne (1694) — Author — 4 copies
Hauska satukirja (1975) — Contributor — 3 copies
Great fairytales, part 6, Justice and punishment (2009) — Contributor — 2 copies

Tagged

Common Knowledge

Canonical name
Perrault, Charles
Legal name
Perrault, Charles
Birthdate
1628-01-12
Date of death
1703-05-15
Gender
male
Nationality
France
Birthplace
Paris, France
Place of death
Paris, France
Places of residence
Paris, France
Education
Lycée Saint-Louis
Occupations
lawyer
secretary
poet
storyteller
fairy tale writer
Relationships
Perrault, Claude (brother)
L'Heritier, Marie-Jeanne (niece)
Organizations
Académie française (1671)
Short biography
Charles Perrault was born to a wealthy bourgeois family in Paris. He attended the best schools and was always top of his class. He chose the law as a career, and also worked with his older brother Jean collecting taxes for the city of Paris. His brother Claude Perrault became a prominent architect of the Louvre. King Louis XIV liked Charles Perrault and gave him several appointments and positions, including looking after royal buildings, designing tapestries, and writing poems. Perrault was elected to the Académie Française in 1671, and opened up the induction ceremony to the public for the first time. In 1672, he married Marie Guichon and the couple had several children. After she died in 1678, he gave up his public life to educate their children. He was nearly 70 years old when he published the book for which he's best remembered today, Contes de ma mère l’oye (Tales of Mother Goose, 1697). It contained eight classic fairy tales that continue to be beloved by adults and children and have inspired many other works, including Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood, Bluebeard, Puss in Boots, Cinderella, and Tom Thumb. Many of the stories were well-known oral tales in Perrault’s time, but had never been written down before.
Disambiguation notice
Strictly C. Perrault could also refer to Claude Perrault, so it may have to be separated out at some stage.

Members

Reviews

Independent Reading Level: Grade 3
Awards: created the Charles Perrault Literary Critics' Award, a national prize for the best published or unpublished books and articles, in the French language, dealing with children's literature
 
Flagged
carly.whitaker | 10 other reviews | Nov 10, 2023 |
Those old Fairy tales are so bad! But I read a few I didn't know, which weren't so great either.
 
Flagged
Stefuto | Oct 31, 2023 |
Nice retelling of Cinderella with gorgeous illustrations by Errol Le Cain.
 
Flagged
2manybooksUK | 4 other reviews | Oct 12, 2023 |
When i found out that Christina Henry was writing The Girl In Red, i did my usual with Christina's books and went back to the past where her stories have their roots: this time it's Little Red Riding Hood's turn.

While most people have heard the Brothers Grimm version of this tale, most don't realise that they plagiarised the whole thing from this book, which was written long, long before the Grimms were even born.

What's striking about Perrault's version is the very obvious metaphorical warning to young maidens about men who only have one thing in mind and how they will seek to mislead them to get what they want.

Shorter than the Grimm version, but much better.   Recommended for anyone interested in the tale being told properly.

So far i've only read Little Red Riding Hood.   I may come back and read the rest sometime.
… (more)
 
Flagged
5t4n5 | Aug 9, 2023 |

Lists

Awards

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Susan Jeffers Illustrator
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María Pascual Illustrator
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John Austen Illustrator
Jean Claverie Illustrator
Walter Crane Illustrator
Charles Welsh Translator
Harry Clarke Illustrator
Roberto Innocenti Illustrator
Janusz Grabianski Illustrator
Simone De Beauvoir Introduction
Saul Lambert Illustrator
Klaus Ensikat Illustrator
Mihail Fjodorov Illustrator
Madame D'Aulnoy Contributor
Clémence Pollet Illustrator
Steven Calvez Notes et dossier pédagogique
Paul Durand Illustrator
Isabevlle Antonini Notes et dossier pédagogique
Annelore Hannedouche Notes et dossier pédagogique
Delphine Strauss Notes et dossier pédagogique
Robert Samber Translator
Anthea Bell Translator
Jan Pieńkowski Illustrator
Lucinda McQueen Illustrator
Fred Marcellino Illustrator
Alf Prøysen Translator
Charlotte Roederer Illustrator
Judith Cheng Illustrator
J. P. Miller Illustrator
Malcolm Arthur Translator
Jean-Luc Rispail Contributor
Isabelle Pin Translator
Valérie Lagier Translator
Birgit Tønnesson Introduction and Translator
Sally Holmes Illustrator
Irene Goede Translator
Henri Galeron Cover designer
W. Heath Robinson Illustrator
Edmond Dulac Illustrator
Christian Biet Contributor
Serge Bihannic Illustrator
Charlotte Gastaut Illustrator
Arthur Rackham Illustrator
Phil Smith Illustrator
Martin Ware Illustrator
Félix Lorioux Illustrator
Henk Krijger Illustrator
John Bierhorst Translator
Panu Pekkanen Translator
Jean-Marc Chatelain Introduction
Gustave Doré Illustrator
H.N. Prenen Translator
Olivier Deloye Illustrator
Alberto Solsona Illustrator
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Eva Bednarova Illustrator

Statistics

Works
793
Also by
52
Members
7,544
Popularity
#3,237
Rating
3.9
Reviews
234
ISBNs
1,580
Languages
33
Favorited
11
Touchstones
58

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