Have You Read Brothers Grimm?
Many of you may recall how I read A Christmas Carol for the first time ever in December. After seeing dozens of television renditions, I don’t know how it never occurred to me. Katie, you might want to actually read the book.
So I did. Oh my gosh – I couldn’t believe how much better the story was. I felt compassion for Scrooge and saw him for so much more. I can’t wait to read it again next winter. (So here’s a little nudge to put it on your “to read” list if you’re up for a suggestion.)
Well I’m at it again. I’ve grown up with Snow White, Rumpelstiltskin, Rapunzel, Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel… the list just goes on and on. You too, right? We’ve seen movies and cartoons, read little books, done children’s theater, and truly found ourselves emerged in so many tales.
So just like with A Christmas Carol, I started thinking, “Why not read the original?”
Of course, this will be no easy task. All of these tales were popularized by the famous Brothers Grimm. But they didn’t speak English. Brothers Grimm spoke German. Hmmmm. German. (That’s me hesitating slightly at this next reading project!)
I took the plunge. This book came home with me for 20 euros. My teacher actually suggested it. She told me that since I already knew these tales in English, it would be so much easier to understand the concept. So true! So here I go…
Why yes – I do believe my brow is furrowed.
It’s sort of like studying for a college entrance exam. There are more words that I do NOT understand than words that I get. The only difference is that Brothers Grimm has a lot of colored illustrations and no one will hush me for sounding everything out loud.
Have you ever read a book in your second language? Or what was your first attempt? I’ve heard a lot of people try Harry Potter. Or maybe you have a favorite tale from Brothers Grimm. The Frog Prince? Hansel and Gretel? Rumpelstiltskin is nudging me right now. You?
June 1st, 2010 at 6:12 am
In high school French class I had to read The Little Prince, and recently picked up a copy at the library, but after 25 years my French has become quite rusty. I couldn’t do it!
I’ve read tales from the Brothers Grimm (translated into English) and they are darker than many versions in children’s books. I like the original, darker ones better, and so do my kids!
June 1st, 2010 at 6:19 am
I think it’s awesome that you’re trying to read these fairy tales in German!
I’m German and my first try at an English book was a kid’s book – I believe it was something about a cow taking a trip… I read that when I was 12, after taking 2 years of English in school and it was way to easy, so I progressed to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Harry Potter next. I really enjoyed it and it helped me pick up a bunch of words I wouldn’t have learned otherwise.
Seriously, especially Harry Potter helped me a lot because I probably never would have learned words like wand, cauldron or potion in school.
So good luck with your reading and I hope you have fun!
June 1st, 2010 at 6:22 am
I’ve got Harry Potter in Welsh! Growing up in Wales it was a compulsory language but since leaving school I haven’t had much use for it (except as a secret code when talking to my dad in the states! :p ) I got on fairly well with the book – it definitely helps to know the story; words that you half remember make sense when you have the context to put them into :)
June 1st, 2010 at 6:59 am
That’s a great idea! Good luck with it. I am sure it will increase your German vocabulary a lot. Hopefully you will begin to find it more enjoyable (unfurrow that brow!)
I have read lots of things in Spanish: newspapers and magazines as well as books (but can’t think of one in particular). I can read Spanish very well, where I have a problem is speaking it. Thinking of the right words for what I want to say. Especially the tenses (past, future). I can understand it quite well when someone speaks (if they don’t speak too fast!) but I am so lame at speaking back.
June 1st, 2010 at 7:10 am
Having learnt four languages so far, I can assure you that this is the safest and easiest way to conquer a foreign language.
More often than not I read literatute in english because it comes natural after all these years but I have yet to actually open and start reading “El amor en los tiempos del colera”. It’s sitting on my nightstand 2 years now, so intimidating… :)
June 1st, 2010 at 7:41 am
I am German, and the first English book I read was “Up the Down Staircase” my English teacher gave me to read as a way to prepare for the Abitur exam in English. After that, I only had to read some textbooks in English. I worked in a library so I always had plenty of German books to read. Only when I had to spend eight weeks in hospital where I was bored out of my mind I rediscovered English books because they took more time to read. Now I am always so tempted by amazon to buy books in English instead of waiting until they are translated into German and are available in our local library!
June 1st, 2010 at 8:44 am
I remember reading books in high school French class – we read Aucassin et Nicolette and an extremely abridged version of Les Miserables. The one that sticks out to me most though was reading Voltaire’s Candide. I was so totally lost the entire time. i had no idea what was going on. Then we read the same book in English class later on and I understood why. My french wasn’t good enough to pick up on the satire and the absurdities.
Reading children’s books and watching children’s tv was one of the ways my mom worked on perfecting her English when she first came to the States. It may seem a bit demeaning at first, but it really helps because the pace is slower and the vocabulary controlled. Persevere Katie! You will get there.
June 1st, 2010 at 10:24 am
YES! I bought the first Harry Potter auf Deutsch when I was there in 2001 to read. unfortunately, almost 10 years later, I still haven’t… might be a good summer reading project?!
June 1st, 2010 at 10:34 am
oh thats a great idea! foreign language books are always helpful esp if you sort of know how the story goes :)
good luck :)
Ein Maennlein steht im Walde ganz still und stumm…. viel Spass beim Lesen ;)
June 1st, 2010 at 3:04 pm
I read those funny little Krimis that they sell at Dussman for like 6 euros in the DaF section… then I got bored with them so read “James and the Giant Peach” in German. Didn’t understand exactly all of it, but it was a good experience! Now have graduated to short stories. Still challenging, but great fun. And somehow fantastic to read before bed, not because they’re easy but because it sets me up for speaking German the next morning.
Good luck and enjoy!
June 1st, 2010 at 5:04 pm
I tried reading Harry Potter (the first one) in French and I had to put it down — it was leisure reading, but there were so many words I had to look up that it wasn’t fun anymore. This from someone who’d already read it in English, who has a degree in French and has taught entry-level French at university! I was still working on my degree at that point, though, and didn’t have the time to spare.
I am not a good model for this. Don’t follow my lead! ;)
June 1st, 2010 at 7:49 pm
I don’t speak French, but I once dated a guy who did. We would go to Montreal and pick out kids stories in French that he taught me to read. I think it’s a great idea. Especially if you get the type of book meant for kids who are learning to read. Picture books are good, too, but sometimes they have an overwhelming number of words. Have fun with the brothers Grimm!
June 1st, 2010 at 9:55 pm
Glueckwuensche! Es freut mich, dass noch jemand angefangen hat, in einer Fremd-/Zweitsprache zu lesen. Sprechen (oder mindestens Verstehen) kann fuer viele viel einfacher sein als das eigentliche Lesen.
Ich bin auch mit den ins Englische uebersetzten Kinder- und Hausmaerchen gross geworden. Dann habe ich an der amerikanischen Oberschule angefangen, die deutschen Versionen zu lesen. Was fuer einen Unterschied, oder??!! Wahnsinnig!
Also — ich wuerde mich freuen, vielleicht ein oder zwei bestimmte Maerchen mit dir zu besprechen.
Alles Gute und viel Vergnuegen beim Lesen!
June 2nd, 2010 at 2:14 am
I’ve been reading light fiction, but I need a new one now! Actually, I just remembered…I have a book that’s a German child’s account/diary of living in Israel for a few years. I may have to find that on my shelves again… I had ‘shelved it’ long ago because it was too difficult for me, but now I have confidence that I could get through it! Every page turned is marked progress, keep it up Katie! =)
June 2nd, 2010 at 5:55 am
My first attempt to read something in German was Russendisko by Wladimir Kaminer — a Russian man who moved to Berlin just as the Wall fell. He writes super funny short stories about what it was like to be a foreigner in Germany at that time. The challenging part is that his stories are all written in the past tense (i.e., Präteritum), which can be a good way to test your grammar! ;)
June 2nd, 2010 at 8:27 am
Look at you go! That book is pretty impressive-looking. I remember reading some things in Spanish in high school and college, but I don’t remember what they were. I’ve been practicing Spanish in preparation for an upcoming trip to Guatemala and I’m hoping I can find a book or two to pick up while I’m down there.
June 2nd, 2010 at 12:28 pm
Your blog is such an amazing inspiration!!
I wanted to pass on two blogs to you that you might already be familiar with, but perhaps not. Holly at decor 8, http://decor8blog.com/, is an expat living in Hannover. She has both her decor 8 blog and a specific ‘expat in Germany’ blog, http://www.hollymaus.blogspot.com/.
Thought you might like to know. :)
June 2nd, 2010 at 1:06 pm
What a delightful project! I love fairy tales. I’ve never had the patience to try a whole book in another language. Good for you for taking it on. :)
June 2nd, 2010 at 1:35 pm
I suggest “Der singende Knochen” from the Gebrüder Grimm.
And after reading, remember, thats the storys that german childrens hear before they go sleeping ;).
June 2nd, 2010 at 6:36 pm
I think it’s wonderful you’re reading this in your second language! The only book I’ve read in my second (also German, in high school and college) was for my last year of German at the U of Minnesota: The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka. Okay…..it’s difficult to understand Kafka in your native language, much less a second! I made it through the book, proud to say, along with the rest of the class!
June 2nd, 2010 at 8:53 pm
Someone gave me a German copy of Pet Cemetery to read when I was in college. Yeah, I might have read the first chapter. So glad to know I’m not the only one who has made an attempt to read a novel in their second language and gave up. The funny thing is that I would have never EVER read a scary book in English, so why would I feel like a failure for not reading it in German?
I think it would be kind of fun to read Brothers Grimm in German. Maybe.
June 3rd, 2010 at 8:23 am
I read lots of those Asterix comic books in German and I love picking up Magazines in foreign languages, small articles and lots of pictures!
June 4th, 2010 at 3:02 am
I think reading tales is even harder then reading some newspaper since there you find words we usually do not use on a daily basis. Viel Erfolg! :-)
“Have you ever read a book in your second language? Or what was your first attempt? u”
1. Yes. Like everything last years. I have to write in my second or sometimes third language as a part of my job. I can not remember my first time, but since it was in my high school it mus me something light…
June 5th, 2010 at 5:30 am
Thanks you guys. I’m a little slow to respond… too much furrowed brow. I’m so grateful for your suggestions and experiences. Wowzers this stuff is tough!
Katie
June 6th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
The only portion of a book I’ve tried to read in another language was actually Han Christian Anderson’s “Ugly Duckling” translated into Chinese in a kids’ book I pickup during a college semester in China. I think its one used to help teach the Chinese characters to kids, because it included the Pin-Yin along with the characters.
Love your website and your creative, practical ideas! My sister Larissa (http://larissainthecity.blogspot.com) told me about your blog.
June 8th, 2010 at 6:35 pm
when i was in high school, i was REALLY into Star Wars novels. my dad, knowing this, came home from a business trip to europe one time with a german version of one of the novels in the Star Wars universe. AWESOME! but i still haven’t read it all the way through.
when Tom and i were in germany for our honeymoon, i made it a point to go into multiple book shops and find at least a few books auf Deutsch that we could buy and bring back to the states. i figured it’d be good to get something that not only would help me learn, but also could help us encourage our future children to learn as well! so i got a few young adult chapter books. unfortunately, i haven’t made it through those either.
Tom and i used to spend like 10-20 minutes a night reading a few pages out of “Die Schatzinsel” (treasure island) which was nice. i read out loud, he corrected pronunciation. and after each sentence or so, i’d stop and translate or have him help me translate. unfortunately, we haven’t finished it yet. we got distracted. hm, maybe i should start those reading nights up again.
June 27th, 2010 at 5:21 am
I took a road trip a couple of years ago along the Fairy Tale road in northern Germany. I visited sites associated with the Grimm Brothers and the fairy tales. Along the way we read the English translation of the fairy tales. It was a fabulous trip! I would like to buy the German version. I’ve read articles in the newspaper and a children’s magazine in German, but think that the fairy tales would be fun to attempt to read.
July 9th, 2010 at 9:37 am
Katie,
I have read your site for a while, but this is the first time I have commented. I took four years of German in high school and have been fascinated with the language and culture ever since. My family and I visited Germany, Austria, Switzerland and other countries a few years ago. The first “book” that I read in German was a German history book that my German teacher wrote. It was a tough read, but it was rewarding. Now I am reading my Bible in German. It parallels in English, so it’s nice to read the English first and then the German second. The old German script is not too bad once you figure out all the letters.