The Emperor's New Clothes
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Authors
Andersen, H.C.
Bell, Anthea
Duntze, Dorothée
Issue Date
1997
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Book, Whole
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Abstract
This version is remarkable first for its size: 9½ x 12½. This is a tall book for a tall tale! The two tricksters in this version claimed that their cloth was the finest ever seen. Its special quality was being invisible to anyone who was either not good enough for his job or shockingly stupid. Each pair of pages has one with several lines of text and some intriguing black-and-white designs while the other is a full page of color; that rhythm is broken only by the two-page colored spread of the town square at the book's center. One of the best of the colored illustrations shows the emperor's wardrobe, which needs ladders and long poles to get at all the clothes. In this version, everyone in the city knew about the cloth, and all the people were eager to discover how stupid or unfit for their jobs their neighbors might be. There is another fine storytelling touch when the tricksters told the emperor as they put the clothes on him They are all as light as cobwebs; you might think you had nothing on at all, but that's the whole beauty of it! This emperor is shown in his undergarments, which are of course more elaborate than today's might be. This emperor, once the procession started and all the people could see, never had so successful a suit of new clothes before. This version ends abruptly with all the people laughing and shouting, but the emperor and his chamberlains keeping up appearances as they march to the procession's end. Delightful!
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Publisher
North-South Books
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Identifier
10438 (Access ID)