The Little Mermaid (Lisbeth Zwerger)

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I grew up with Disney movies and my favourite one was the one with the mermaid that has long red hair, and I loved her love story, and also enjoyed watching the rest of the movie series that followed years later.

And while loving Ariel for so long, I have never actually read the original story. So a few weeks ago, I decided to cherish it properly, as a true childhood love deserves to be cherished.

And I was left with my jaw dropped and my mouth open, unable to sleep. I can’t say this book crushed my childhood love, but it definitely shook me quite hard.

If you are expecting to read about the little mermaid, and her adventures in the water, and how she would give anything to see how people show more live on Earth, and fall in love with a prince – you will get all that. In fact – the book description is far better compared to the movie. Incomparable, actually. The book glows with bright colourful descriptions of the world under the sea, and it is so vividly enchantingly explained.

But if you are expecting to read about the adorable love story of Ariel and the prince, and their happily ever after – that is not happening. Because things go wrong. Horribly wrong. With a crushing, terrible end, that will torture you in your dreams.

It wasn’t my intention to make this review so dark. The story is still wonderful, and full of life. However, there is no happy ending, and that, for me, was crucial to not enjoy it.

And I am not usually upset with unhappy endings. It happens so often. But this one was so brutal and cruel, that it felt so disturbing. Maybe, because it is my favorite childhood movie. Maybe, because I knew this to be a happy story. Maybe, because I didn’t expect this at all.

Hans Christian Andersen is an amazing writer. I have read many of his stories, and enjoyed them greatly. I honestly don’t know what was going on in his life when he was writing this, but wow. Just wow.

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The Little Mermaid, illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger.

Lisbeth Zwerger, that fairy-tale illustrator par excellence, whose numerous interpretations of the work of Hans Christian Andersen - from individual tales like Thumbeline, The Swineherd, and The Nightingale, to collections such as Andersen's Fairy Tales - have all won accolades, turns her attention to the tale of The Little Mermaid in this 2004 picture-book.

The visual effect is delightful, with Zwerger's colorful, idiosyncratic illustrations affording the reader enchanting vistas, both above and below sea. I liked many of the smaller details, from the little mermaid's splayed out hair, as she gazes out the palace window, dreaming of the world above, to the way in which the mermaid show more sisters' hair spreads out on the water, as they swim before the prince's castle. I also appreciated the fact that the not inconsiderable text is broken up by sentences printed in blue and green inks. This edition may not be beautiful, in the manner of the Charles Santore retelling, nor pretty like the Katie Thamer Treherne, but it does have a charm all its own: playful and self-assured. Lisbeth Zwerger fans will rejoice to find it, even those (like myself) who don't especially care for this tale!

Addendum: readers should note that the highly moralistic ending, which P.L. Travers once described as "blackmail," is firmly in place here, thanks (or not, as the case may be) to Anthea Bell's scrupulous translation. show less

Whenever I re-read a fairytale from my childhood, I am always surprised at how different it is from my memory of it. This one, of course, suffered from the innumerable times I was forced to watch the Disney version with the grandchildren.

Andersen was the quintessential moral story teller, with many lessons to be carried away by both children and adults. The obvious ones of not longing for things that you cannot have and measure the cost carefully before you make the deal, but on the flip side, nothing exceeds love for virtue and you might get unexpected rewards for good deeds done.

I was interested in the religious overtones regarding the soul, for that was what the little mermaid was seeking, the chance to be human and have a soul show more that would live beyond the grave. show less

This classic tale from Hans Christian Anderson tells the story of a young mermaid who dreams of becoming human. Originally written in 1837, this story is quite different in tone from the Disney version, which many children (and adults) will immediately think of when mentioning the title. While I was reading this story, I found myself constantly comparing it to the Disney film, even though I really didn’t mean too. Consequently, I think this affected my opinion of the original story because I found it to be too ‘dark’ for children and not really something that I would read to my kids. However, keeping in mind that it was written almost two hundred years ago, this type of story was likely considered as nothing too unusual. As a show more matter of personal preference though, I’ll stick with the Disney version. show less

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I grew up with Disney movies and my favourite one was the one with the mermaid that has long red hair, and I loved her love story, and also enjoyed watching the rest of the movie series that followed years later.

And while loving Ariel for so long, I have never actually read the original story. So a few weeks ago, I decided to cherish it properly, as a true childhood love deserves to be cherished.

And I was left with my jaw dropped and my mouth open, unable to sleep. I can’t say this book crushed my childhood love, but it definitely shook me quite hard.

If you are expecting to read about the little mermaid, and her adventures in the water, and how she would give anything to see how show more people live on Earth, and fall in love with a prince – you will get all that. In fact – the book description is far better compared to the movie. Incomparable, actually. The book glows with bright colourful descriptions of the world under the sea, and it is so vividly enchantingly explained.

But if you are expecting to read about the adorable love story of Ariel and the prince, and their happily ever after – that is not happening. Because things go wrong. Horribly wrong. With a crushing, terrible end, that will torture you in your dreams.

It wasn’t my intention to make this review so dark. The story is still wonderful, and full of life. However, there is no happy ending, and that, for me, was crucial to not enjoy it.

And I am not usually upset with unhappy endings. It happens so often. But this one was so brutal and cruel, that it felt so disturbing. Maybe, because it is my favorite childhood movie. Maybe, because I knew this to be a happy story. Maybe, because I didn’t expect this at all.

Hans Christian Andersen is an amazing writer. I have read many of his stories, and enjoyed them greatly. I honestly don’t know what was going on in his life when he was writing this, but wow. Just wow.

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Hans Christian Anderson’s version of the Little Mermaid is darker than the Disney version. This in my opinion made it much more enjoyable. It is the classic tale of a mermaid who falls in love with a prince and makes sacrifices to win him. Unlike the Disney version, the little mermaid doesn’t win the prince and stay human. Instead she chooses not to kill him and save her life. She plunges into the sea where she becomes a daughter of the air. Her choices gave her the ability to gain a soul and after 300 years her soul would go to heaven. This was an absolutely beautiful book.

This is a modern day story of the Little Mermaid who is fascinated with life above water and being human in order to have an eternal soul. She gives the sea witch her beautiful voice in order to meet the prince, marry, and gain her eternal soul. When this fails she is turned into foam but because of her unselfishness is giving a chance to gain her soul after all.

I like the way the author selects his words to describe the environment above and below the sea. It’s very close to the traditional story with a twist; her main goal is gaining her soul. It's a lovely and touching story about love and sacrifice as shown by the princess when she did not harm the prince because of her love for him and her ability to gain her soul from her show more unselfish sacrifice which is what she wanted.

I believe this story could be used during creative writing, having children explore traditional stories and give it their own twist. show less