Hansel and Gretel

Isadora, R. (2009). Hansel and Gretel. New York, NY: G. P. Putnam’s Sons.

Brief Annotation: Hansel and Gretel are brother and sister and their family has come across some difficult times. Their mean stepmother tries to leave them in the woods because there is not enough food for the entire family. The children overhear this and Hansel gathers pebbles so they can find their way back. After the first time finding their way back, the stepmother tries to leave the children in the woods again but this time the children use bread to find their way back. The birds had eaten their breadcrumbs and the children were lost in the woods. After three days they became very hungry. Eventually they found the evil witches house made of food. She tried to feed them a lot of food so she could eat them. Gretel came to the rescue and pushed the witch in the oven. The children escaped and found their way home where their dad was so happy to see them. Their stepmother had died and they lived happily ever after.

Genre: Fairytale, Picture book

Grade Level: Grade 3+

Readers who will like this: Readers with a great imagination. It is a little longer so for slightly more advanced reader. Teachers who want to use a picture book to retell a classic story.

Response/Rating (1-4): *** There was a lot of literature per page but it was well written and the illustrations were amazing. There was a twist on the classic fairytale of Hansel and Gretel. It is set in an African setting, which gives it great diversity.

One question you would ask before a read aloud: Have you ever been in a situation where you had been frightened by something?