A Christmas Greeting: A Series of Stories

This collection opens with Andersen's personal greeting to English readers, framing these tales as gifts. But these are not simple gifts. Among the fourteen stories are some of the most emotionally devastating tales ever written: The Little Match Girl, a freezing child who sees visions of warmth and love as she dies in the cold. The Red Shoes, a ballet of obsession and sacrifice that will haunt readers for years. The Shadow, a philosophical masterpiece about identity and what happens when one's own reflection develops a will of its own. These stories know that childhood is not only innocent, it is also precarious, dangerous, and often brutal. Yet Andersen never loses his faith in imagination, in small kindnesses, in the transformative power of a well-told tale. This is Andersen at his most raw and his most tender. It is a collection that understands how stories can save us, how they can break us open, how they can become the thing that keeps us alive when nothing else will.