Little Brother and Little Sister is a classic European fairy tale. The two siblings run away to the forest after dealing with abuse from a wicked stepmother. Little Brother gets thirsty and wants to drink from a stream, but the wicked stepmother is a witch and put a spell on all the streams. Little Sister hears voices in the stream telling her what will happen if they drink from the stream, but after refusing water two times, little brother drinks from the stream and becomes a deer. They live happily in a cottage deep in the forest, but one day they heard the sound of a hunt and little brother wanted to see the hunt up close. The king sees the deer and instead of killing him he follows the deer home and falls in love with Little Sister. They get married and live a great life until she has a baby. The jealous stepmother and daughter get revenge on little sister and kill her. However, little sister visits her baby every night and when the prince learns the truth, she becomes alive again. The king kills the evil stepmother and her daughter, which allows Little Brother to become human. This story might be frightening for young children because Little Brother and Little Sister suffer a lot in this book. Some scenes might be disturbing. The theme of this book is the love between a brother and sister. Even when the brother turned into a deer, the sister never left his side. She allowed him to live in the castle with her and she always tended to his needs. Their bond is what helped them escape from the wicked stepmother and survive in the forest. This story uses imagery to tell the story. Most scenes were described with detail, so I was able to picture it in my head. ( )

Little Brother and Little Sister is a Fairy Tale by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm sometimes confused with Hansel and Gretel. The story is about an orphaned brother and sister who are living with their evil step-mother who is a witch. One day they decide to run away because of the utter cruelness their aunt has bestowed upon them.
Once their Aunt has realized that they have run off follows them and casts a spell upon the water of the streams in the forest. Little Sister hears a voice warning them if they drink the water they will change into a tiger at the first stream, the next stream warns of them being changed into a tiger. Finally at the third stream Little Brothers drinks and is changed in to a deer.
They adapt to life as Little Sister and Little Brother who is now a deer, but Little Bother has strong urges to run and be free wherever hunting season approaches. Little Sister hesitatingly agrees to let him go. Every time he goes he returns however on one of his final trips he get shot in his hoof. He makes it home but is spotted by one of the Prince’s huntsman. The huntsman tells the Prince and the Price asks the Hunter to follow the deer but not hurt him. The next day the Prince shows up at Little Bother and Little Sisters home and asks Little Sister to come back to his Castle and be his wife. Once they are married and have a baby the witch comes back and wreaks more havoc.
I enjoyed this book for its happy ending and course the nicely drawn illustrations.The illustrations are very well done and they incorporate well and reinforce the text. The vocabulary is simple and this would make a good story time book for young children of all ages. ( )

The story is about a little brother and sister who escape from home because their stepmother is cruel to them. Like most of the fairy tales, the stepmother is a witch and sees where they go and what they do. They wander in the dangerous woods and face lots of problems. The brother gets thirsty and wants to drink from the wellspring. The first time the girl hears that if he drinks from the wellspring he will turn to a lion, second time to a wolf and third time to a deer. The third time the little brother cannot control his impulse and drinks water from the lake and turns too dear. While hunting the king follows the deer and sees the girl. Finally the king falls in love and marries the girl and promise to protect the deer. The stepmother can hear everything and plan to kill the prince and replace her daughter. The king realizes her plan, and the witch is burnt in fire. The brother returns to human form.

The book is well written and illustrated. It has easy vocabulary. The story reveals the spiritual and animalistic duality in human. It also shows the strong relationship between the brother and sister and there is happiness after the hardships. ( )

Personal Response: I was horrified by the trials and tribulations encountered by the little brother and sister. I actually wouldn't read this book to young children.
Curricular Connection: In a fifth grade classroom, students could read this story aloud and identify some of the stereotypes present, such as an evil witch, handsome prince, and a beautiful queen. ( )