What-I'm-Reading-Wednesday: The Brothers Grimm translated by Jack Zipes

This gorgeous new translation of the Brothers Grimm fairy tales is a brand new addition to the Ort Library's collections. The Complete First Edition: The Original Folk & Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm published by Princeton University Press is translated and edited by Jack Zipes and contains breathtaking silhouette illustrations throughout by Andrea Dezsö. There are 156 stories in all, including all of the original Grimms' tales from both the 1812 and 1815 publications.

But Reader beware, these are not the fairy stories of your childhood. In Zipes' translations, he attempts to maintain the original integrity of the language and events, which results in more terse and often more horrifyingly gruesome tales than the recent modern, Disneyfied adaptations with which we are familiar. For example, in the original version of "Cinderella", the stepsisters are encouraged to cut off parts of their feet to fit into the glass slipper. The Prince only discovers their deceit by the trail of blood that follows each sister as she walks to join him. The savagery and brusqueness contained within the stories are reflected in Dezsö's dark, haunting silhouette illustrations. This volume also includes a wonderful introduction by Zipes that details his research and presents the historical context of the stories. Zipes has even translated the original Grimms' prefaces and notes referencing the storytellers themselves.

This volume is available to request from the Ort Library catalog here: http://catalog.umd.edu/docno=00446063
Click on "Availability", then click on the yellow "Request" button, and log in using your last name and 14-digit Library barcode number on your ID. If you need assistance, please contact the Circulation Desk at 301-687-4395. 

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