Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave

This gorgeous adaptation of a traditional Russian fairy-tale is the third collaboration between Marianna Mayer and Kinuko Craft, who worked together previously on Pegasus and The Twelve Dancing Princesses. It follows the adventures of the beautiful and brave young Vasilisa, who is left (Cinderella-like) in the care of a cruel stepmother. When Vasilisa is ordered to the house of the witch Baba Yaga, the only thing that stands between her and a terrible fate is her own goodness, and the love of her long-dead mother, embodied by a magical doll.

One of the great figures of Russian folklore, Baba Yaga the witch is a multi-faceted character. Part forest spirit and part-wise-woman, she is sometimes portrayed as a baby-eating witch, and show more sometimes as a helpful mentor to the hero or heroine. But whatever her role, she is always terrible to behold and dangerous to approach. Craft, who is always at her best when painting the sinister, does not disappoint, and her Baba Yaga is a masterpiece of eerie horror. A depiction made all the more powerful by its juxtaposition with her paintings of the beautiful Vasilisa.

This tale was originally collected by the Russian folklorist Alexander Afanasiev, and Mayer's narrative follows the original story quite faithfully, with the notable exception of the title, which has been changed from Vasilisa the Beautiful to Vasilisa the Brave. As always, I wish that the author and publisher attributed the tale to its source. show less

The pictures of Baba Yaga are a little scary (we'll see if my kids wake me up with nightmares tonight), but beautiful. For the first 98% of it, the story is great, focussing on Vasilisa's steadfast equanimity and kindness in the face of unkindness. I wish it had ended with her living and working with her adoptive mother rather than going on to be a Cinderella marry-the-prince (or in the case, marry-the-tsar) story.

This book is about Vasilisa, who lives with her evil stepmother and stepsisters, that is sent out to Baba Yaga, a mean witch, to bring back light to the house. Not intended for her to come back, the stepmother and stepsisters think they get rid of her for good. A spinoff of Cinderella and Little Red Riding Hood, this folk tale takes many magical turns that keeps readers engaged. I would use this book as a read aloud in my middle school classroom to introduce the difference between cultures and text. I really enjoyed reading this book and the Russian culture is an interesting take on folk tales.

This traditional Russian story was fun. Being used to the more sanitized "Cinderella" story, it was fun reading this one, where there were witches with skulls and even murder! The words used paint a vivid picture, and during the cold dark time in the forest, the way it was described gave me chills...and the pictures of Baba Yaga are great in their terribleness! I like it, a nd would have it in a school library.

I didn't find Vasilisa to be as dynamic of a character as Too Nice from Oram's version, and it kind of took a left turn at the end, but the illustrations were striking and leant to the classical fairy tale feel of the book.

Sweet, lovely Vasilisa lives with her jealous stepmother and stepsisters on the edge of a dark forest inhabited by the evil witch Baba Yaga. One night the stepmother sends Vasilisa to visit Baba Yaga, an errand from which the gentle girl has little chance of returning alive. "An engaging text and accomplished paintings set this version apart .... A stylized and classy offering.

My grandmother used to tell me the story of the Baba Yaga when I was a little girl and I found it fascinating, along with other Russian folk tales. A fascinating story that started me thinking about life and people from a very young age. Now that I think of it now, It's very philosophical and thought provoking. This particular version is well written and the artwork beautiful.