Fifty Famous Fairy Tales

By: Rosemary Kingston - editor

Narrated by: Marguerite Gavin

Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Here is a timeless and wonderful collection from the best sources of fairy tales: Hans Christian Andersen, Charles Perrault, the Brothers Grimm, and Antoine Galland.

Tales in this collection include: "Puss in Boots", "Rumpelstiltskin", "The Frog Prince", "Cinderella and the Glass Slipper", "Jack and the Beanstalk", "The Wild Swans", "Snow White and Rose Red", "The Spirit in the Bottle", "Little Red Riding Hood", "The Three Bears", "The Musicians of Bremen", "The Fisherman and his Wife", and many others sure to be familiar to children and adults alike.

(P)2000 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Marguerite Gavin reads the entire collection, and her pleasant, articulate voice is welcome story after story." (School Library Journal)
"Gavin's assured, velvety voice is a good match for this adaptation of an anthology first published in 1917....Gavin's consistent, even-keeled delivery make this a good choice for bedtime and quiet time, for listeners both young and older." (Publishers Weekly)
"What a treat to have a compendium of the greats of folk literature from the European tradition narrated by Marguerite Gavin, who evokes memories of one's own mother reading the stories by one's bedside. Her steady, soothing voice navigates the familiar...and treasured, but less well-known, tales." (AudioFile)

There are not 50 fairytales

There are not 50 fairytales in his recording, so you’re going to be disappointed if you expect it to actually be telling the truth with the title. There’s nothing wrong with what’s here, but I don’t know why it’s called this.

Fifty Famous Fairy Tales

The narration is adequate. She doesn't change voices and lacks excitement, but she is easy to understand. The stories are definitely of the older variety -- quite a bit of violence.

Fair Collection of Fairy Tales

If you are looking for a collection of fairy tales that has a good collection of classics and lesser known tales then this is a good option. The narrator is ok. Her voice is pleasant enough although sometimes she lacks emotion.
Many, if not most, of these tales have been edited slightly and are not as gruesome as the originals, but some still retain their “gothic” elements. If you want Disney, this isn’t it, but if you want something more tame than the original Grimm tales then these should suit you well.
I do love that this collection includes “Little One Eye, Two Eyes, and Three Eyes.” It was always a favorite of mine from my old book of stories. It is not usually included or known about, at least in my circle of acquaintances.

amazeing

it was a blast to the past with all of my favorite storys amazing ten out of ten

good narration, easy to understand

I downloaded a few different fairy tales series for my kids to listen to in the car. This was by far the best. A lot of the other stories that I downloaded had complex language that made it hard for my kids (4 and 7) to understand. This one is free of annoying music and the narrator speaks with a clear american accent. Several of the other story collections were narrated by people with thick English accents making it hard for young American ears to understand. This is also 6 hours long which is great because it provides so many hours of entertainment and also, the adult is not forced to listen to the same stories over and over again.

Very Nice

These are well done, back to back and seem to captivate my 4 and 7 year old children in the back seats while I drive. I only wish the reader would announce the end at the close of each story as there is a time of reflection on what each story meant that I think the children and I with the children could benefit from. What I've started doing, when I'm listening with the children (and not talking to my passenger or just concentrating on my driving) is to say "The end." in an announcement fashion. Sometimes I stop the recording at this point to ask what lesson did each child learn, starting with the 4 year old. Nearly every story has a lesson and the children love to hear the stories over and over it seems. I highly recommend this collection.

Dead bodies, slaughtered heads for bedtime!!!??

What on earth are you guys thinking? My daughter likes listening to fairy tales and stories at bedtime or quiet time.. luckily my husband and I were near by two separate occasions and heard the story about a man who had killed all his ex wives and kept their dead bodies hanging in a room. Omg! I’m so so pissed! What the heck really? Pull this content immediately.

Chapters?

Would be nice if the stories were listed instead of “chapters.” How are we supposed to know where to find any of the 50 Fairy Tales? By using 30 second increments until we find the one we want to hear?

Short and sweet

The stories in this listing are perfect length as a bedtime story. However, they are best READ by a parent, not listened to on a machine. If you lack the time or ability to read them yourself then, by all means, let this book tell the tale. The reader has a pleasant voice.
The best thing about this listen is that it reminds us of the stories we read or heard when we were small and guides us in a selection to read to our children and grandchildren. It is a fast overview of the "Jack" stories.

Wonderful Collection!

A trip down memory lane on some stories and some surprises. A few of these are the basis for newer stories/movies.