Peukalo-Liisa

This is a sweetly illustrated fairly classic retelling of Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale (only without the religious overtones that I think were part of the original telling). Basically Thumbelina is dragged around everywhere and nearly forced to marry a few suitors she doesn't like, but is

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helped out by a few friends. Finally she lands with the king of the fairies- a suitor she does like, and subsequently marries.

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It's a shame the cover art isn't yet available on LibraryThing because the illustrations are the reason to read this book. It is beautifully written in a classic fairy tale style, but I read more from the pictures than I did from the words. The bright colors and flowing lines were enchanting.

Children and adults alike have identified with "Thumbeline", a story of a fairy-like girl who has little control over her destiny. A commentary on the mistreatment of children, Andersen describes how the girl is forced into marriage to an ugly toad, a mole, and a June bug. Escaping these fates, she

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is whisked away to freedom by a swallow she rescued one winter, and is deposited in a field of flowers where other fairies live. She finds her prince and lives happily ever after. Children will love this story because all of the characters are familiar insects or animals they can find in their backyards.

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Genre: Fairytale

Review: This story is a fairytale, because the not only do the animals in this story talk, but the main character, Thumbelina, is the size of a mouse and eventually becomes a fairy. The events that go on in this story could never really happen, therefore, this story is fictional.

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Characterization: Thumbelina is the flat protagonist, because in this particular story she doesn't really learn much and as readers we don't learn much about herself as a main character.

Media: acrylic gouache and watercolo

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*Folktale* This story was Slyiva Long’s take on the classic story by Hans Christian Andersen. Although I had heard of Thumbelina, I had never actually heard the story. I found it a little strange but interesting. I really enjoyed the illustrations and the way some of the pages had the text

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written horizontally, and others had the text written vertically. I think the main point of this story is to teach children about hope in seemingly hopeless situations.

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Thumbelina written by Hans Christian Andersen, Illustrated by Adriene Adams, and published 1961 by Flensted Publishers is an exciting traditional literature picture book. The stories use of great illustrations, character and third person use really helped to bring the story together.
The

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illustrations are great in this book. They help to enhance the story by giving the perspective of Thumbelina next to everyday objects. There is one page where she is making a bed next to a teapot. The teapot completely dwarfs Thumbelina and her small body. I also liked how the color changed depending on which character was being talked about at that time. When the Toads are kidnapping Thumbelina there is little to no color in the illustrations except the green murky waters that the toads live in. There is also a lot of detail in the story. When Thumbelina is relaxing in the grass I saw the grass and foliage sprawl through the pages. The detail on the pages is superb. The illustrator puts a great amount of detail on the leafs and grasses in the garden. Still the author keeps the perspective of Thumbelina so small that the reader can see her small frame next to common objects. The character of Thumbelina has lasted through the ages in stories and fairy tales since her creation in 1835. Thumbelina is a loveable character who explores the world around her and the animals that she encounters. The way that Thumbelina is described really helps me to relate to the story. I felt bad for the woman who wanted a child of her own but could not figure out where to get it from. Seeing Thumbelina develop into the world from her safe flower and home helped me to stay attached to the story. I felt sad for her when she woke up surrounded by water and lilies. I also felt happy for her when she was being taken away by the butterfly. It was nice to see Thumbelina meet small people like her. I could tell that she developed into a confident person. The use of third person in this story helped me to see the world, and danger, around Thumbelina. The third person use helped me to broaden my view of the world of Thumbelina. It gives me an unbiased view of what is going on. Not only do I see things from Thumbelina’s point of view, I also see it from the other people’s views and the animals view. Finding your purpose in life and finding out what life has for you are central themes in this story. Thumbelina must find out why she is in this world and what it has in plan for her.

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It was really fun for me to read this book because I never read anything about Thumbelina before. I have however, heard of her countless times. It's always nice when you can put a name to a face.

“Thumbeline” was a darker fairytale. What I liked most was the illustrations. They were done in darker colors and looked slightly smeared. It was a nice contrast from the bright colors and crisp sharp lines I saw in most Traditional Literature. The illustrations were highlighted nicely because

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the words were on the opposite page. This allowed for me to read the text and then look at the illustration or vice versa. One thing I disliked was that the Prince ended up making Tumbeline change her name. The main idea in Thumbeline is to stay strong and preserver.

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Summary: This children's book is about a small thumb-sized girl named Thumbelina who was created in the center of a rose for a woman who could not have children. She was taken away from her home to marry a young toad but was unhappy and eventually escaped. Then she lived on her own in a garden

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until winter came and a kind mouse took her in. She lived with the mouse and was to marry her neighbor, the mole. In the molehole she comes across an injured swallow whom she nurses back to health. When cured, the swallow takes Thumbelina away from the unhappy place and to a beautiful garden where she meets her prince and lives happily ever after.

Argument: I think this a good traditional story for children to read. I enjoyed the element of nature in this book. Every page had to do with flowers, gardens, animals or insects. The setting took place in many aspects of nature. This not only creates an intriguing story but it teaches children about the environment. It teaches them about the parts of a plant, the habitats animals live in, the seasons, and even the elements of a garden. This book allows children to take a tour through nature with Thumbelina and her adventures. The second element of this book I enjoyed was the descriptive language. Every sentence allowed me to create mental images in my mind of Thumbelina's story. This helps children comprehend the book and connect the illustrations to the text. For example, on page 26 it says, "Long vines of purple, green, and white grapes climbed dazzling marble pillars and the air was fragrant with honeysuckle and gardenias". The last element I liked about this book was the format of the pages. Some pages you read left to right and some you had to flip the book upside down and read top to bottom. This engages the reader and adds a little element of surprise and fun to the story. I liked how when the pages were flipped the illustrations were of long beautiful flowers that needed to be shown lengthwise.
The main idea of this book was to treat others the way you wanted to be treated and they would do the same for you. Thumbelina took care of the swallow and in the end the swallow came back to rescue her from the mole. I also think an underlying theme was to address many aspects of nature and teach children about different plants, animals, and habitats.

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Thumbelina is a very small girl born from a tulip. She was so beautiful that everyone wanted to marry her, but they we never her cup of tea. She endured hardships of living and wandering about. She was about to marry a mole that she didn't love and her sparrow friend brought her somewhere he knew

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she would love. She found a fairy king and fell in love. Very soon, the married, leaving the sparrow sad because he too loved her. The sparrow flew to Denmark and told a man about his story.

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This is a lovely retelling of the classic tale, with magical yet sweet illustrations by Adrienne Adams. I remember reading this particular edition from my childhood, but was enthralled anew reading it as an adult. A delightful book.