The Ugly Duckling – H. C. Andersen and Ana Sande – Kalandraka

It was summer. The field was beautiful. Around it was a grove of woods, and in the deepest heart of the woods was a large lake. There, on an old farm, a duck hatched its eggs... "The Ugly Duckling" is a story written by Hans Christian Andersen to describe the most difficult moments of his life, when he still had to endure many humiliations until his recognition as an author. Coming from a humble family, he was practically unable to study, although his favorite distraction was a puppet theater, the source of origin of his vocation as a playwright. Aiming to succeed in the theatre, he moved to Copenhagen at the age of 14, where he was a dancer, chorus girl and author of tragedies. The patron Jonas Collin, one of the directors of the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, got him a place at the Latin school of Slagelse. Those years left him unforgettable memories, which are translated into this universally known tale. This text consists of an adaptation especially aimed at early readers, based on the revision of the original work, and was rewritten taking into account the keys of orality: agile and direct narration, predominance of action over description. As for the illustrations, in addition to working on the volume of the characters, Ana Sande took into account the reader's point of view: sometimes using chopped shots, so that the viewer is the observer; and others, counterpointed, so that the spectator can see through the eyes of the duckling. The passage of time also does not go unnoticed, shaped by the protagonist's growth and the changes of season.