Coming this Fall: Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm by Philip Pullman

  

Here's a preorder for you: Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm: A New English Version for a November 8, 2012 release date in the US.

But in the UK it gets more confusing with Grimm Tales: For Young and Old listed with a September 6, 2012 release date and Fairy Tales from the Brothers Grimm: A New English Version for the same Nov. 8 date, probably the US release listed on the UK site.

These aren't Pullman's first foray into fairy tales, of course. You can find some of his earlier attempts in various publications, including Four Tales which brings together Clockwork, The Firework-Maker's Daughter, I was a Rat!, and The Scarecrow and His Servant.

From Grimm outlook: Philip Pullman's fairytales to arrive in September: Philip Pullman will retell 50 of his favourite Grimm tales – some of them deliciously creepy – in 'clear as water' new versions at The Guardian:

Exciting news for fairytale fans: Philip Pullman is adapting the classic stories of the Brothers Grimm.

This is a project the His Dark Materials author has been working on for a while – he mentioned it to a fansite a year ago, telling Bridge to the Stars that "this isn't a book for children only", and that he was "telling the best of the tales in my own voice, and I'm finding it a great purifier of narrative thinking, rather as a pianist relishes playing Bach's preludes and fugues as a sort of palate-cleansing discipline".

But now we finally have a publication date – 6 September – and a publisher: Penguin Classics. And the new version of Grimms' Tales for Young and Old sounds great. Pullman has chosen his 50 favourite stories, "from the quests and romance of classics such as Rapunzel, Snow White and Cinderella to the danger and wit of such lesser-known tales as The Three Snake Leaves, Hans-My-Hedgehog and Godfather Death", and is retelling them in "clear as water" new versions, complete with commentary on each story's history and background.