Book review: East of the Sun and West of the Moon - Kay Neilsen et al.

One of the new books that I had to look through at work was a big, beautifully illustrated version of East of the Sun and West of the Moon, a collection of Norse fairytales with essays on the history of their collection, translation, and illustration. Kay Neilsen did the illustrations for these stories, and they are just gorgeous. You can see the Art Deco and stage scenery influence. If you've never seen his art, I recommend searching for his name in Google Images. I'd read most of these stories before; if you've done any extensive reading of fairytales, you'll recognize the tales (animal husband, youngest son hero, do not go into that room, magical help, etc.). I liked this book because of the essays in the beginning, which talked about the history of illustrated fairytale book publishing, fairytale collecting and publishing, Kay Neilsen's life (he sadly died penniless and nearly obscure), etc. If you're one of those people who want to buy every kind of fairytale book there is or are huge fans of Neilsen's art, I would recommend this. The only downside was that the cardboard (!) covering of this hardcover got a rip on the spine, which is really weird for such an expensive-looking book. I was shocked to learn there are murals by Kay Neilsen in Los Angeles and in the town where my sister went to college--I could have visited had I known!

Score: 4 out of 5 stars
Read in: mid-late February
From: new library acquisitions (work)
Format: hardcover
Status: still at the library, obviously