His Fairytale Life: A Book About Hans Christian Andersen

Ages 4 to 8, Grades P to 3

The storyteller becomes the story in this illuminating biographical picture book of Hans Christian Andersen, father of the modern fairy tale.

A century and a half have passed since Hans Christan Andersen’s death, but his stories are more alive than ever. Across languages, borders, and disciplines, his timeless creations have left a footprint beyond measuring. Now, come along back to the beginning and meet the human that came before the legend.  

He was a boy

who lived with a mother

who could not read,

but remembered every fairy tale

she’d been told…

Appropriately penned by Jane Yolen, who Newsweek has called “the Hans Christian Andersen of America,” His Fairytale Life is as immersive and transporting as all good fairy tales should be. Each page sings with Brooke Boynton-Hughes’s dazzlingly intricate illustrations. Classics lovers and Disney fanatics alike will cherish this dreamy tome.

About the Author

Jane Yolen is the author of close to 400 books for both children and adults, including perennial favorites How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?, Owl Moon, and The Devil's Arithmetic. Her books have won such awards as the Caldecott Medal, two Nebula Awards, the World Fantasy Award, the Jewish Book Award, and the Sydney Taylor Body-of-Work Award. Newsweek once called her “the Hans Christian Andersen of America.” She lives in Hatfield, Massachusetts.

Author Residence: Hatfield, MA

Author Hometown: Manhattan, NY and Westport, CT

Brooke Boynton-Hughes is the author and illustrator of Brave Molly, and the illustrator of many other picture books, most notably Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors. She holds a BFA in printmaking from Colorado State University and an MFA in figurative art from the New York Academy of Art. She lives in Colorado with her husband and children.

Illustrator Residence:Fort Collins, CO

Illustrator Hometown:Loveland, CO