An Illustrated Treasury of Swedish Folk and Fairy Tales

The artist John Bauer was a true genius! His illustrations will knock your socks off. This is a book for people of all ages, from kids to grandparents. If you are not into this kind of books, buy one and donate to your local elementary school library or a children's ward in a hospital. I did, and might do it again. Just have a look into the free pages, you’ll understand! Can highly recommend and will absolutely buy again!

This book far exceeded my expectations. The illustrations are not just beautiful, imaginative, and magically evocative; they are plentiful, too, with one on nearly every other page. The tales are well constructed and wonderfully readable in this translation. I assume they are 19th century art tales, but they are in the folk tradition and they keep to a standard stable of fantastic creatures (usually trolls, sometimes also tomtes or gnomes or elves). I would have liked a bit more bibliographic and biographical information on the writers (not just on the remarkable John Bauer), but this is a quibble that maybe a future printing can fix (along with the occasional typo). Quibbles aside, I recommend this collection most highly. I read it out loud to an almost-four year old daughter and a five-and-a-half year old son and they love it. Princesses, trolls, brave and clever peasants making their way in the big world: what more could one wish for? In short, the stories are a good length for reading aloud, the pictures are plentiful, and altogether this is a truly enjoyable book. I don't write many reviews, but I had to sing the praises of this gem.

Beautiful illustrations in a very nice book. We have enjoyed the stories multiple times over the years

This book combines absolutely gorgeous illustrations with a selection of traditional fairy tales that tend to include more independent female characters than similar fairy tale collections. For example, in "Agneta and the Sea King," the heroine follows her own path and removes herself from a home where her husband is emotionally manipulative. The stories are well-written and unique; I have not seen them in other collections. Most of the fairy tales include subtle insights or morals that will appeal to both children and adults. Several of the stories emphasize the importance of being kind and generous-- without being dull. The mysterious illustrations by John Bauer are, in my mind, a mixture between Arthur Rackham and art nouveau. However, those who find the naked body offensive should avoid this book, as it does contain a few illustrations with undressed children (although a child probably does know what he or she looks like naked) and adults as seen from behind.

My grandfather used to have a small library about trolls, tomtes, and other such creatures. He was an old Swede who passed away at age 99 1/2 who loved to tell us grandchildren stories. Some of the same tales and also many photos from John Bauer are in this collection. I bought 2 books (hardcover version) for my daughter and my nephews as Christmas gifts. Before I wrapped them up I locked myself away in the room to read and look at the photos. I can't express how happy I am with this book. It brings back so many memories of my grandfather. This type of story telling is lost in our modern day children's books. I have read 4 of the stories to my daughter so far. She loves them and asks to see the photos for several minutes at a time before we turn the pages. The hardcover is very sturdy, nice binding, gorgeous colors and clarity in the photos. The print and pages are large enough to read at a slight distance if you are sitting with your child or trying to show them the pictures as you read. Brilliant!

The book is aesthetically pleasing. The stories are some of the best. My favorite is The Ring.

This was a gift to an adult son, who has a penchant for good storytelling and yes, he has Scandinavian roots. He read a tale the moment he opened this gift. The Treasury is a collection of stories in an imaginative writing style that reminds me of the Book House Books our family had when I was a child. The illustrations are wonderful, as are the quirky descriptions of characters in the stories. Time passing is handled in an elusive way in the tales. Jump into this book, and you may find that time you spend absorbed in these pages also becomes irrelevant.

I bought this book because someone shared an illustration by John Bauer in a Facebook group devoted to the Golden Age of Illustration. I fell in love with the trolls. A bonus for me is the collection of tales. Despite having a Swedish grandfather, I was never exposed to anything about Swedish culture, so these are fun to read. This is a sturdy, well-bound book and large pages make the illustrations easy to fall into.