The Old House

By Hans Christian Andersen

In The Old House, a boy is invited to meet the old man across the street and offers him a gift of a toy soldier. The toy soldier, unhappy with his new surroundings, flings himself through a hole in the floor and disappears. After the old man dies, the old house is torn down, and a new one is built, but the toy soldier remains to be rediscovered.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dreamscape Media
• Release date: Oct 3, 2017
• ISBN: 9781974995479

Hans Christian Andersen

Hans Christian Andersen was a Danish author and poet best remembered for his fairy tales, both original and retold, including the beloved classics "Thumbelina," "The Emperor's New Clothes," "The Fir Tree," "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," "The Princess and the Pea," "The Red Shoes," "The Ugly Duckling," and "The Snow Queen." 

Reviews for The Old House

[abigailadams26 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A young boy, observing that his elderly neighbor is lonely, sends one of his tin soldiers as a gift, receiving an invitation to the "Old House" in return. So begins a touching, but short-lived friendship, one that will return to the boy many years later, long after the old man and his old house have disappeared...Another of Hans Christian Andersen's original fairy-tales, The Old House was originally published in 1847, and has that reflective, somewhat melancholy tone I have come to associate with his work. This picture-book edition sets the tale in a modern city, making the contrast between the old house - with its turrets, carved balcony, and overhanging upper story - and the surrounding buildings (skyscrapers), all the more dramatic. Jean Claverie's interior scenes, in particular, have a warmth that is very appealing. I'm not sure that there is another single-story, picture-book retelling of The Old House, making it especially fortunate that this one is so engaging. Well worth the time of any Andersen devotee!