The Nutcracker

September 26, 2016
The Wang brothers dramatically abridge E.T.A. Hoffman’s holiday tale in this addition to the Cozy Classics series, which reduces the story to 12 words, accompanied by photographs of needle-felted characters staged in intricate miniature environments. This adaptation begins with a “gift” (Drosselmeyer hands Marie the nutcracker as they stand before a page of text from Hoffman’s story). Marie’s “sleep” then leads to a “fight” with the mouse king, and she and the prince later “go” to a land of “sweets.” The sumptuously detailed and carefully composed scenes should enchant even readers who know little or nothing about this story, and adults can always help fill in the blanks. Up to age 2. Agent: Emily van Beek, Folio Literary Management.

January 1, 2017
The holiday favorite gets the Cozy Classics treatment.The felt dolls are back, this time presenting The Nutcracker. The classic story is narrowed down to 11 words and laid out in the same format the Wangs used for Victor Hugo's Les Miserables (2013) and Charles Dickens's Great Expectations (2016). Unlike those adaptations, which struggled under the weight of epic tomes, this board book adapts a simpler story and comes off much better. The text ("gift / sleep / mouse / fight / throw / go / snow / sweets / dance / wake / love") is made of basic words that little readers will be able to grasp, but even so, adult readers will probably have to fill in some blanks in the narrative. The cute photos of posed dolls will be adored by parents entranced by Pinterest and Etsy. The twee aesthetic does have a Christmas-like charm that suits this adaptation well. A sweet stocking stuffer. (Board book. 2-4)

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October 1, 2016

PreS-This board book series entry purports to tell the story of The Nutcracker in 12 words-gift, sleep, mouse, fight-with a dozen soft-focus, theatrically lit hand-felted illustrations. The young child for whom this version is intended will need an adult who is familiar with the tale to fill in the details. There just isn't enough here to provide a satisfying narrative. VERDICT A solid addition for those looking for a quick introduction for a very young audience.-Virginia Walter, UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies

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