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Disney's Beauty and the Beast
"One freezing night, an old beggar woman came to the castle. She offered the Prince a red rose in return for shelter from the cold..."
In an enchanted castle, a beautiful, independent heroine encounters a monstrous beast. Although she becomes his prisoner, she sees the goodness deep within the Beast's hardened heart, and their friendship begins to blossom – all while an arrogant villain plots against them.
Disney's Academy Award-winning Beauty and the Beast is a story of the powerful magic of love, and here you can relive that magic. Faithfully retold in a true read-aloud style, with original, full-color artwork from the Disney film, here is a new classic – a tale as old as time.
In an enchanted castle, a beautiful, independent heroine encounters a monstrous beast. Although she becomes his prisoner, she sees the goodness deep within the Beast's hardened heart, and their friendship begins to blossom – all while an arrogant villain plots against them.
Disney's Academy Award-winning Beauty and the Beast is a story of the powerful magic of love, and here you can relive that magic. Faithfully retold in a true read-aloud style, with original, full-color artwork from the Disney film, here is a new classic – a tale as old as time.
30 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 228 reviews
December 22, 2022
و ستظل الجميلة تبحث عن مفتاح النور بداخل الوحش لتنير روحه..و في رحلة البحث سيذوي جمالها..و تخمد جذوة الأمل و الخير في قلبها..و قد تموت روحها قبل ان تجد النور؛ و قد لا تجده
ستبقى الجميلة و الوحش اجمل قصة خيالية-واقعية عن الزواج او عن جوهر العلاقة الأبدية بين الرجل و المرأة
كل فتاة تحمل بداخلها" بيل" المليئة بالثقة في قوة الحب على التغيير...و كل رجل هو نصف وحش و لا ينتظر من يغيره على الاطلاق !! و من هنا تأتي أهمية القصص الخيالية
فلنجعل الرجل مسحوراً.. .و قبحه الخارجي هو السبب في قبح تصرفاته..و لن تزول اللعنة الا لو فهم كيف يحب و يتحب. .و تعود بالطبع للقرن 18
القصة 36 صفحة لكنها حافلة بالرموز. .عن الإقطاع.. العبودية و الأسر. .الذل والقهر. .و طبعا هي بعيدة عن نسخة ديزني الفاتنة ..و اان اشتركا في الهدف المعروف "الحب أقوى من اي سحر"!!!ا
و في الواقع أقول انا : فلتحبي الوحش كما هو
..و لا تنتظري معجزات
ستبقى الجميلة و الوحش اجمل قصة خيالية-واقعية عن الزواج او عن جوهر العلاقة الأبدية بين الرجل و المرأة
كل فتاة تحمل بداخلها" بيل" المليئة بالثقة في قوة الحب على التغيير...و كل رجل هو نصف وحش و لا ينتظر من يغيره على الاطلاق !! و من هنا تأتي أهمية القصص الخيالية
فلنجعل الرجل مسحوراً.. .و قبحه الخارجي هو السبب في قبح تصرفاته..و لن تزول اللعنة الا لو فهم كيف يحب و يتحب. .و تعود بالطبع للقرن 18
القصة 36 صفحة لكنها حافلة بالرموز. .عن الإقطاع.. العبودية و الأسر. .الذل والقهر. .و طبعا هي بعيدة عن نسخة ديزني الفاتنة ..و اان اشتركا في الهدف المعروف "الحب أقوى من اي سحر"!!!ا
و في الواقع أقول انا : فلتحبي الوحش كما هو
..و لا تنتظري معجزات
May 25, 2011
Love the movie, hate, hate, HATE the marketing. The moral, which could not be presented more clearly, is that true beauty comes from within. Belle, the heroine of the story, is an intelligent and sensible girl who's usually got her nose in a book. Throughout virtually the whole film she wears this practical blue dress:
But in 95% of the merchandise - dolls, posters, lunch-boxes etc - she is depicted wearing her admittedly tasteful but rather surprisingly revealing yellow ball gown, gazing up at the Beast with languishing eyes:
Am I the only person in the world who finds this intensely irritating?
But in 95% of the merchandise - dolls, posters, lunch-boxes etc - she is depicted wearing her admittedly tasteful but rather surprisingly revealing yellow ball gown, gazing up at the Beast with languishing eyes:
Am I the only person in the world who finds this intensely irritating?
November 2, 2022
VERSION: Disney (technically, Retold Beaumont)
ADAPTATION: 4.5 stars.
ARTWORK: 5 stars
BEAUTY: Brunette.
BEAST: He has the head of a buffalo, the mane of a lion, the brow of a gorilla, human eyes, the tusks of a wild boar, the arms and body of a bear, and the legs and tail of a wolf.
CURSE: An enchantress cursed the prince as a boy for being unkind to her.
THE Rs: Expanded and made more natural.
KEY ELEMENT CHANGED: The curse, Belle has no siblings, Adam was cursed as a boy, there's a rival for Belle's affection, Maurice isn't economically ruined, the castle servants are turned into furniture. Basically, it's a retelling and should be considered its own version, the third after Villeneuve and Beaumont.
FAVOURITE SCENE:
I've never been the biggest fan of Disney's version of Beauty and the Beast, but I've always loved the art and the visuals of the motion picture film, and it's nice to have a copy in paper for my collection, and for gazing at without having to rewatch. The artwork looks superior on the screen, though, especially the colours and facial expressions.
Positives first: their depiction of Beast is exactly what Beast should be: hulking, animalistic, imposing, frightening, and awe-inspiring. He isn't supposed to be simply a man with an animal's head; that look would make him appear like he's wearing a mask like at a costume party. And who is ever frightened into trembling by such an appearance? Beauty wouldn't be. Beast is supposed to make you fear him for how he looks and love him for how he is, and in that, Disney was incredibly successful. It's no doubt one of my favourite depictions of him, and regardless of what I think of the plot, this is always going to be the highlight of Disney's version.
The castle, the town Belle lives in, everything in the film is superb. It's an artist's dream. Belle's looks, her iconic yellow dress, the dance, the dining scene... So many things to appreciate and gaze at, the creators did so much right visually. Storytelling on the screen is visual, and they excelled at it.
So why was Disney not my favourite? In a nutshell, because of the curse. In this reread of my top favourite B&B picture books, I've said over and over that the reason for the curse is important, and that both Villeneuve, the creator of the tale, and Beaumont, the populariser of the tale, have made it clear it was not the prince's fault. But Disney, who based their version on Beaumont, decided to make this a tale about punishment for bad behaviour and made it so that child Prince Adam got cursed because he was unkind to an enchantress. It was his fault, he "asked for it."
And that's always rubbed me the wrong way. Beauty and the Beast is a tale about personal transformation and redemption, and making it the prince's fault didn't work well thematically. I hated Disney's take for the longest time for this, whilst at the same time feeling conflicted because I liked their art so much, liked their Beast so much.
Then came people like Jerry Griswold, and especially Bethel Grove, who presented such convincing and well-argued analyses of Disney, and I was convinced, slowly but surely, I read more academic papers and books, and finally came to like the Disney version. For better or for worse, Disney is the version that everyone knows, and so there's no longer two version but three: Villeneuve, Beaumont, and Disney.
Now I'm happy to count Disney amongst my favourites. I'll probably always rant about ignorant people who can't tell one version for another and mix the tale and the film when adapting it into picture books, but that's par for the course. Not everyone is careful to research the tale, after all.
ADAPTATION: 4.5 stars.
ARTWORK: 5 stars
BEAUTY: Brunette.
BEAST: He has the head of a buffalo, the mane of a lion, the brow of a gorilla, human eyes, the tusks of a wild boar, the arms and body of a bear, and the legs and tail of a wolf.
CURSE: An enchantress cursed the prince as a boy for being unkind to her.
THE Rs: Expanded and made more natural.
KEY ELEMENT CHANGED: The curse, Belle has no siblings, Adam was cursed as a boy, there's a rival for Belle's affection, Maurice isn't economically ruined, the castle servants are turned into furniture. Basically, it's a retelling and should be considered its own version, the third after Villeneuve and Beaumont.
FAVOURITE SCENE:
I've never been the biggest fan of Disney's version of Beauty and the Beast, but I've always loved the art and the visuals of the motion picture film, and it's nice to have a copy in paper for my collection, and for gazing at without having to rewatch. The artwork looks superior on the screen, though, especially the colours and facial expressions.
Positives first: their depiction of Beast is exactly what Beast should be: hulking, animalistic, imposing, frightening, and awe-inspiring. He isn't supposed to be simply a man with an animal's head; that look would make him appear like he's wearing a mask like at a costume party. And who is ever frightened into trembling by such an appearance? Beauty wouldn't be. Beast is supposed to make you fear him for how he looks and love him for how he is, and in that, Disney was incredibly successful. It's no doubt one of my favourite depictions of him, and regardless of what I think of the plot, this is always going to be the highlight of Disney's version.
The castle, the town Belle lives in, everything in the film is superb. It's an artist's dream. Belle's looks, her iconic yellow dress, the dance, the dining scene... So many things to appreciate and gaze at, the creators did so much right visually. Storytelling on the screen is visual, and they excelled at it.
So why was Disney not my favourite? In a nutshell, because of the curse. In this reread of my top favourite B&B picture books, I've said over and over that the reason for the curse is important, and that both Villeneuve, the creator of the tale, and Beaumont, the populariser of the tale, have made it clear it was not the prince's fault. But Disney, who based their version on Beaumont, decided to make this a tale about punishment for bad behaviour and made it so that child Prince Adam got cursed because he was unkind to an enchantress. It was his fault, he "asked for it."
And that's always rubbed me the wrong way. Beauty and the Beast is a tale about personal transformation and redemption, and making it the prince's fault didn't work well thematically. I hated Disney's take for the longest time for this, whilst at the same time feeling conflicted because I liked their art so much, liked their Beast so much.
Then came people like Jerry Griswold, and especially Bethel Grove, who presented such convincing and well-argued analyses of Disney, and I was convinced, slowly but surely, I read more academic papers and books, and finally came to like the Disney version. For better or for worse, Disney is the version that everyone knows, and so there's no longer two version but three: Villeneuve, Beaumont, and Disney.
Now I'm happy to count Disney amongst my favourites. I'll probably always rant about ignorant people who can't tell one version for another and mix the tale and the film when adapting it into picture books, but that's par for the course. Not everyone is careful to research the tale, after all.
November 19, 2024
4,5 Sterne
Ein wunderschönes Märchen, welches ich schon eliche Male gelesen, gehört und gesehen habe in verschiedenen Ausführungen.
Ein Mädchen, das Bücher liebt. Ein verzauberter Prinz auf einem verzauberten Schloss und ganz entzückende Bedienstete, verwandelt in Geschirr und Uhren :)
Am Ende wird es noch mal richtig dramatisch und spannend; dann gibt es aber natürlich ein Happy End!
Ich liebe es 🧡
Ein wunderschönes Märchen, welches ich schon eliche Male gelesen, gehört und gesehen habe in verschiedenen Ausführungen.
Ein Mädchen, das Bücher liebt. Ein verzauberter Prinz auf einem verzauberten Schloss und ganz entzückende Bedienstete, verwandelt in Geschirr und Uhren :)
Am Ende wird es noch mal richtig dramatisch und spannend; dann gibt es aber natürlich ein Happy End!
Ich liebe es 🧡
February 22, 2016
من صغري وهالقصة أحب قصص الطفولة لقلبي ..
" الحب الصادق يلي بيقبلنا رغم بشاعتنا وعيوبنا بيقدر يعمل معجزات ويطلّع أحلى ما فينا " مؤمنة جدا بهي الحقيقة ♥
كنت حابة اقرأ الحكاية الأصلية ودورت كتير ولقيت نسخ مختلفة لعدة كتّاب ما عرفت أيا فيهم الأصلية ! وبالنهاية قرأت نسخة ديزني اللي قرأتا بطفولتي .. إذا حدا من الأصدقاء بيعرف النسخة الأصلية بالعربي أو الإنجليزي يا ريت يساعدني
" الحب الصادق يلي بيقبلنا رغم بشاعتنا وعيوبنا بيقدر يعمل معجزات ويطلّع أحلى ما فينا " مؤمنة جدا بهي الحقيقة ♥
كنت حابة اقرأ الحكاية الأصلية ودورت كتير ولقيت نسخ مختلفة لعدة كتّاب ما عرفت أيا فيهم الأصلية ! وبالنهاية قرأت نسخة ديزني اللي قرأتا بطفولتي .. إذا حدا من الأصدقاء بيعرف النسخة الأصلية بالعربي أو الإنجليزي يا ريت يساعدني
January 15, 2010
I must say that I think Beauty and the Beast is one of the best Disney stories. I love how Belle is able to look beyond the physical appearance of the Beast.
May 20, 2017
ABURRIDO!!!!!!!!!
March 22, 2017
الجمال الحقيقي ياتي من الداخل وحتى لو حلت على احدهم لعنة بقليل من الحب قد يختفي الوحش
January 11, 2011
omg i loveeeed this.... shout out to 7th grade!
Read
February 18, 2015Bennett cried when the Beast turned human again. Daddy says it's because this is a girl book and beasts>princes!
March 15, 2017
I read it so many times. It's one of the most beautiful fairytales. And today it's my first time in english ;)
December 21, 2017
Loved by my children and grandchildren. Recommended.
April 27, 2017
You may be wondering why on Earth I am posting so many reviews of short kids' books, and the answer is that I'm moving house for the first time since I was a toddler. I'm essentially having to pack up my childhood here!! Having to say goodbye to so many books is devastating, but on the plus side, it gives me a reason to sit and scroll throw all these gorgeous picture books. This one is an early reader's Book of the Film of the brilliant Beauty and the Beast (my favourite Disney film as well!!) and while it is sumptuously illustrated with painted stills from the film and retells the famous story with wistful nostalgia, it is of course rather inconsequential and only worth 2.5 stars at the most. However, for kids that love the film (me too!), this does the trick. There's also some surprisingly difficult words thrown in here, so perfect for children trying to expand their vocabulary (and adults too, I suppose).
July 14, 2016
Read an ibook version of it for my kid. I'm so moved and teary eyed while my kid is quiet. I guess i can say we loved it!
February 28, 2017
l love this book and it is so romantic l just like the part when the beauty and the beast just started dancing and l loved it l wish l was the beauty :)
April 7, 2017
4.4*/5*
...but we all know beauty and the beast is my fave so it gets 5* oh
...but we all know beauty and the beast is my fave so it gets 5* oh
May 9, 2021
Lovely story for Young and young at heart.
September 9, 2022
Beauty and the beast has always been one of my favourite stories.
Unfortunately I couldn’t watch the movies because of my seizures. But I’ve always wanted the library that the beast gave to Belle.
Unfortunately I couldn’t watch the movies because of my seizures. But I’ve always wanted the library that the beast gave to Belle.
May 3, 2018
Personal Response: Growing up, this was always my favorite story. I read this book to Emilee. Emilee's favorite part was when they got married. Her least favorite part was when Belle got locked up in the cage in the castle. She also doesn't like Gaston because he is mean.
Plot Summary: Belle is an ordinary girl who loves to read. She lives with her father. When he goes missing, she tries to find him and ends up in a castle. Belle doesn't realize that it's home to the beast. He captures her and let's her father go free. She is imprisoned there for her life. Belle befriends all of the enchanted objects in the castle. She finds a rose that can turn the beast back into human if someone falls in love with him. Belle doesn't realize that she is about to start falling in love. They spend much time together but a magic mirror shows that Belle' s father is sick. She goes to him and tries to help. Gaston, the evil prince, takes the village and storms the beasts castle. They fight and the beast ends up winning. He and Belle kiss and he turns back into a prince. They live together happily ever after
Characterization: Belle has always been strong and independent. She doesn't need anyone to make her feel special. Men have always thrown themselves at her, but she prefers to stay away. When she meets the beast, it is not love at first sight. They talk and grow to love each other. They have both found the person that they didn't know they needed.
Recommendations: I would recommend this book to young girls. It is an easy to read book, but you can also read it to any small child. Ages 0 to 5 would most likely enjoy this book. It is about true love.
Plot Summary: Belle is an ordinary girl who loves to read. She lives with her father. When he goes missing, she tries to find him and ends up in a castle. Belle doesn't realize that it's home to the beast. He captures her and let's her father go free. She is imprisoned there for her life. Belle befriends all of the enchanted objects in the castle. She finds a rose that can turn the beast back into human if someone falls in love with him. Belle doesn't realize that she is about to start falling in love. They spend much time together but a magic mirror shows that Belle' s father is sick. She goes to him and tries to help. Gaston, the evil prince, takes the village and storms the beasts castle. They fight and the beast ends up winning. He and Belle kiss and he turns back into a prince. They live together happily ever after
Characterization: Belle has always been strong and independent. She doesn't need anyone to make her feel special. Men have always thrown themselves at her, but she prefers to stay away. When she meets the beast, it is not love at first sight. They talk and grow to love each other. They have both found the person that they didn't know they needed.
Recommendations: I would recommend this book to young girls. It is an easy to read book, but you can also read it to any small child. Ages 0 to 5 would most likely enjoy this book. It is about true love.
March 13, 2013
Lo he encontrado tras años sin tener noticias de él. Estaba en casa de mi abuela y tenía que ponerlo aquí.
Fue el primero libro que me regalaron, apenas recuerdo como lo leía -apenas no, no lo recuerdo-, y tampoco sé quién me lo regaló, tengo que preguntar a mi madre.
Creo que fue este libro -y la película- y Bella quienes me inculcaron el placer por la lectura, ver a una protagonista que no paraba de leer me gustó mucho, por eso me identifico tanto con ella, imagino que a muchas otras lectoras le pasa algo parecido.
Lo voy a guardar como oro en paño, ¡es mi primer libro!
Fue el primero libro que me regalaron, apenas recuerdo como lo leía -apenas no, no lo recuerdo-, y tampoco sé quién me lo regaló, tengo que preguntar a mi madre.
Creo que fue este libro -y la película- y Bella quienes me inculcaron el placer por la lectura, ver a una protagonista que no paraba de leer me gustó mucho, por eso me identifico tanto con ella, imagino que a muchas otras lectoras le pasa algo parecido.
Lo voy a guardar como oro en paño, ¡es mi primer libro!
October 11, 2017
I love the story and structure of this book, the subject of this book is very clear, the content is also very complete. Read this book I know Love is the topic of the whole story which can，change any dark and evil stuff.Love means everything,The real world is full of war and darkness，which turns people's life in to chaos.Human's life lacks of Love ,and if the love exists ,humen have the power beat everything.
February 4, 2020
Another Disney classic that I love the best beacuse it teaches kids about seeing the beauty within the person and not just how you look outside. Had fun expalining to my daughter as to why the girl is dancing with a monster?😂😂
September 23, 2018
love love love , love the book , love the animation and absolutely will love the 2017`s movie with the belle Emma Watson
August 1, 2019
I read this to my little and it has been since I was little that I last read it. All the nostalgic feels came back and he was enthralled throughout the story. <3<3
March 4, 2020
One of my favourites since I was younger Very good message too😀
June 7, 2023
Pierwsza książka czytana w całość po angielsku🔝
KOCHAM BAJKI pls czułam się znowu jakbym miała 5 lat and it was fun
POLECAM
Cudowne 40 stron XD
KOCHAM BAJKI pls czułam się znowu jakbym miała 5 lat and it was fun
POLECAM
Cudowne 40 stron XD
Read
June 13, 2025Adding this bedtime book for Della on here bc the one I just read was 96 pages! haha
Read
August 27, 2025It was okay. I kept getting distracted so it took a few days to finish.
May 28, 2017
It's a cute little book that captures the animated Disney classic very well and makes me want to go on ahead and actually watch the movie that just came out.
July 13, 2020
This is a great classic fairytale suitable for children in years 1 to 3 to enjoy. It has dialogue, bright cartoon illustrations and the moral of seeing past appearances. In the past my village school has been to see the pantomime so this book would be good to read to introduce the story. It is quite short so it's more suitable for younger children.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 228 reviews