The Singing Bones by Shaun Tan

“Wicked stepmothers, traitorous brothers, cunning foxes, lonely princesses: There is no mistaking the world of the Brothers Grimm and the beloved fairy tales that have captured generations of readers. Now internationally acclaimed artist Shaun Tan shows us the beautiful, terrifying, amusing, and downright peculiar heart of these tales as never before seen.

With a foreword by Neil Gaiman and an introduction by renowned fairy-tale expert Jack Zipes, this stunning gallery of sculptural works will thrill and delight art lovers and fairy-tale aficionados alike.” –Amazon.com

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frog king

 

“[Tan’s] starkly lit sculptures… have a look reminiscent of Inuit art; they appear simplified and smoothed by many hands. Their scale is hard to gauge. They seem simultaneously monumental and small enough to tuck in a pocket, like Japanese netsuke.” — New York Times Book Review

“Although readers can only see Tan’s remarkable artistry in two dimensions, the figures exert an almost primal force. Rather than simply represent what happens in these stories, these pieces embody their power.” — Publishers Weekly, starred review

“These inscrutable, unsettling sculptures demand that viewers connect art and tale, examining their own reactions to the darkest impulses and glimpses of light within the book — and themselves.” — Kirkus Reviews, starred review

“Almost any person with a bit of understanding about folk and fairy tales can pick this up and find it powerful, amusing, disturbing, and cool, but older readers who take the time to dive into the essays by Gaiman, Zipes, and Tan will get the most out of this thoughtful, creative collection.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, starred review

* “A stunning, eerie addition to fairy tale and folklore collections.” — Booklist, starred review

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