“Maria Tatar has created a beautifully illustrated and annotated anthology of Andersen's most memorable stories. Forget witchcraft and Harry Potter. Put aside Oz and Wonderland. Explore the beauty, sadness and philosophical depth of the immortal tales of Denmark. "

Martin Gardner, author of Alicia. Annotated Edition

The goblins, mermaids, fairies, and shadows in Hans Christian Andersen's stories have enchanted children and adults alike for generations. Curled up in their armchairs or under blankets, readers around the world have marveled at the adventures of "The Ugly Duckling," "Thumbelina," or "The Princess and the Pea." Despite worldwide success, Andersen, who achieved incredible fame and recognition, has never received the real literary attention it deserves.

In this beautifully illustrated and profusely illustrated volume, Andersen's best-known works, such as "The Emperor's New Clothes," "The Snow Queen," or "The Little Mermaid," are joined by "The Shadow," "The Story of a mother "and the little known" Tita Pain of Toothache ", mature stories that reveal another Andersen, darker, with a prose full of imaginative depth. Maria Tatar shows that Andersen - marginalized for working in a "minor" language (Danish) and in a literary genre considered minor (children's literature) - deserves a place in the literary pantheon of the nineteenth century alongside Dickens, Balzac, ETA Hoffmann , Gogol or Zola.

These stories are accompanied by more than 150 illustrations by artists such as Kay Nielsen, Edmund Dulac, and Arthur Rackham. The book also includes two essays on Andersen's cultural influence and a wealth of annotations that explore the rich cultural context of the 19th century in which these stories were shaped.

The stories, divided into Tales for Children and Tales for Adults, show us a new Andersen: a precursor of aestheticism who anticipated the cult of beauty at the turn of the century, as well as the existential concerns of modernism. Hans Christian Andersen. Annotated Edition features a writer whose works not only anticipated, but also helped create many modern and even postmodern cultural projects. Maria Tatar opens up rich new interpretations of the stories, preserving magic for children and adults and broadening our understanding of how to read them.