THE TROLL WITH NO HEART IN HIS BODY
and Other Tales of Trolls, from Norway
adapted by Lise Lunge-Larsen
Not surprisingly, trolls come off second best in all but one of these nine stories. “The Boy Who Became A Lion, a Falcon, and an Ant” turns three monsters into rubble; “The Boy and the North Wind” give a thieving troll-hag a proper comeuppance; in the title story a young prince finds a troll’s heart in an unlikely place; and everyone knows what happens to the menacing bridge-dweller in “The Three Billy Goats Gruff.” In the one exception, “The Handshake,” three trolls greet a stray horse’s owner with a prank, but part on friendly terms with man and animal. Bowen draws inspiration from Norwegian folk art for her polychrome woodcuts, emphasizing silhouettes and giving her long-nosed trolls a properly dimwitted, disheveled look. Lunge-Larsen notes both her printed sources and any changes she’s made, adding an essay on the stories’ significance for young listeners. It’s an appealing collection: varied but not too long, spiced with danger, heroism, humorous moments, and violence that’s toned—not watered—down. (bibliography) (Folklore. 10-13)