The Blue Fairy Book

My children are spellbound

Where does The Blue Fairy Book rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is one of the best audiobooks we've listened to. It goes for hours and hours and keeps my young children (6 and 8) spellbound for well over an hour at a time. They love it, and so do I, because they are learning wonderful vocabulary and quality story-telling while they enjoy the exciting stories.

Will listen to again and again

The performance is above mediocre, but that is probably because we have become accustomed to all star performances, such as Tim Curry, Elijah Wood, and the like. That said, my children pay no attention to that. They loved this book and will listen to it over and over. My two oldest are ages 6 and 8.

Narrator kept making gross noises.

I couldn’t finish this book. The narrator kept making gross noises with her mouth. Swallowing saliva or licking her lips. It was disgusting to listen to. I know that’s probably natural when you’re just sitting there and talking for hours, but it was always during breaks in her speech, they could have easily edited it out. But they didn’t.

The Original Fairy Tales, No Disney Here

Would you listen to The Blue Fairy Book again? Why?

Yes, I would listen to, "The Blue Fairy Book" again. Who can resist the classics AND a great narrator!

What did you like best about this story?

The best thing about, "The Blue Fairy Book" is that it reminds me of the fairy tales that I read in England when I was young. This isn't necessarily the book for children, unless an adult explains it and makes sure the children don't think this is real. I would have read it to my daughter, but not my son. He had nightmares and this would make them worse.

Nostalgia made new

I had forgotten how good these stories were. Although they're full of testosterone and not the Disney versions, they make great listening. These are the myths and legends of society. Angele Masters does a great Gaelic accent, and is at her best when voicing old women and heroes.

Racist, Patriarchal, Ableist, Classist, Misogynistic, Ageist

Stories of a bygone era, these can stay in the past where they belong. These are NOT for children if you hope your children grow into a democracy that honors all people. This IS the kind of smut that programs misogyny, racism, ableism, ageism, classism, and entitlement into our unconscious minds to run without our awareness while setting us up for internal biases. Stay away if that matters to you.

Thirsty swallowing

Please stop recording the sound of swallowing.

Fun fairytales, More like the original grimms bros than Disney. Just wasn’t into the narrator.

Angele Masters narration

Any additional comments?

While Masters did some very good voices & I loved her Scots accent in the final few tales, there were audible mouth sounds (mostly swallowing sounds) which I found off-putting.

Intriguing

So fun and intriguing, makes you want to dance and never stop listening! Great family story.

Some old and popular, some different

(As posted in GoodReads)
People who know me know that I love children's books. And fairytales are a particular love of mine. I don't know why I hadn't read _The Blue Fairy Book_ when I was a kid, but here I am.
This collection included many stories with which I am familiar, but the very nature of fairytales is that they're part of a rich oral library passed among different families and different traditions, so there are huge numbers of variations within each story! The amount of consistency is actually surprising!
There are actually a few stories with which I was unfamiliar, but they were kind of the exception. This particular collection is entertaining, and the sources are quite a variety – from the Arabian Nights to _Gulliver's Travels_ to King Arthur's stories to Grimm and various obscure places. It seems to be a somewhat comprehensive collection.