• Little Mook and Dwarf Longnose Kids Book-
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Little Mook and Dwarf Longnose Kids Book

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Little Mook and Dwarf Longnose by Wilhelm Hauff. Wilhelm Hauff was a story-teller in the great European mythic tradition. His short stories, peopled with a vivid assortment of dwarves, evil witches, enchanted swans, and devious princes, owe a clear debt to the Brothers Grimm. But rather than rehashing old tales, Hauff created a realm far more exotic than the Grimms' Black Forest, a place where the morals are less than clear-cut and where characters must rely on wits as much as magic spells to solve their predicaments. One collection (probably his best known volume), Little Mook, provides the two tales for our new Pocket Paragon: "The History of Little Mook" and "Dwarf Longnose." Both stories are decorated with the glowing, gemlike tempera paintings of Boris Pak, a Russian artist whose ornate, whimsical style perfectly captures the romance and humor of these two extraordinary fables. Hardcover, 96 pages.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6–Hauff, who was 10 when the Grimms published Household Tales, published Little Mook and other stories at the age of 24, and a second collection, including "Dwarf Longnose," a year later. Hauff meant his tales to convey moral instruction. In "Little Mook," a dwarf surmounts hardship, supposedly teaching tolerance, but since he can be both vindictive and light-fingered, the message is ambiguous. "Dwarf Longnose" has been illustrated by Maurice Sendak in Dwarf Long-Nose(Random, 1960; o.p.) and published as Dwarf Nose (North-South, 1994; o.p.) and Little Long-Nose (Candlewick, 1997; o.p.). It is the rambling tale of a 12-year-old deformed by a vicious witch after he defends his mother's vegetables from her despoiling fingers. He drinks a delicious broth and dreams away seven years serving the sorceress. When he wakes and escapes, his parents reject him, not recognizing his huge nose and hands. This nightmare view of adolescence ends happily when he puts to use the cooking tips he learned in his dream state, gets a job as the duke's chef, befriends a girl bewitched as a goose, and is eventually released from his spell. His parents accept him once he's handsome and self-reliant, and there's a hint of future happiness with the goose-girl. These odd 19th-century tales are unlikely to enter the canon of their own accord, but fortunately they have attracted artists' attention, and Pak is a worthy successor to Sendak, Lisbeth Zwerger, and Laura Stoddart. His paintings deploy caricatured figures in jeweled and stippled colors against backgrounds of matte black. Details of faces and dress are engaging, and the style, combining realism in overall treatment with touches of exaggeration, exactly matches Hauff's.–Patricia D. Lothrop, St. George's School, Newport, RI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Description

Little Mook and Dwarf Longnose by Wilhelm Hauff. Wilhelm Hauff was a story-teller in the great European mythic tradition. His short stories, peopled with a vivid assortment of dwarves, evil witches, enchanted swans, and devious princes, owe a clear debt to the Brothers Grimm. But rather than rehashing old tales, Hauff created a realm far more exotic than the Grimms' Black Forest, a place where the morals are less than clear-cut and where characters must rely on wits as much as magic spells to solve their predicaments. One collection (probably his best known volume), Little Mook, provides the two tales for our new Pocket Paragon: "The History of Little Mook" and "Dwarf Longnose." Both stories are decorated with the glowing, gemlike tempera paintings of Boris Pak, a Russian artist whose ornate, whimsical style perfectly captures the romance and humor of these two extraordinary fables. Hardcover, 96 pages.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6–Hauff, who was 10 when the Grimms published Household Tales, published Little Mook and other stories at the age of 24, and a second collection, including "Dwarf Longnose," a year later. Hauff meant his tales to convey moral instruction. In "Little Mook," a dwarf surmounts hardship, supposedly teaching tolerance, but since he can be both vindictive and light-fingered, the message is ambiguous. "Dwarf Longnose" has been illustrated by Maurice Sendak in Dwarf Long-Nose(Random, 1960; o.p.) and published as Dwarf Nose (North-South, 1994; o.p.) and Little Long-Nose (Candlewick, 1997; o.p.). It is the rambling tale of a 12-year-old deformed by a vicious witch after he defends his mother's vegetables from her despoiling fingers. He drinks a delicious broth and dreams away seven years serving the sorceress. When he wakes and escapes, his parents reject him, not recognizing his huge nose and hands. This nightmare view of adolescence ends happily when he puts to use the cooking tips he learned in his dream state, gets a job as the duke's chef, befriends a girl bewitched as a goose, and is eventually released from his spell. His parents accept him once he's handsome and self-reliant, and there's a hint of future happiness with the goose-girl. These odd 19th-century tales are unlikely to enter the canon of their own accord, but fortunately they have attracted artists' attention, and Pak is a worthy successor to Sendak, Lisbeth Zwerger, and Laura Stoddart. His paintings deploy caricatured figures in jeweled and stippled colors against backgrounds of matte black. Details of faces and dress are engaging, and the style, combining realism in overall treatment with touches of exaggeration, exactly matches Hauff's.–Patricia D. Lothrop, St. George's School, Newport, RI
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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