Aunt Mille has always told me that I have the soul of a great poet. I am not sure about this, but I love her so much that I do not dare contradict her. The reason I love her so much is that she always gave me and my brothers and sisters lots of sweets when we were little. Now that I am a student, I have my own apartment and sometimes Aunt Mille comes to visit. The other night, while she was sleeping in the next bedroom, I received a visit from another, much less pleasant, lady… Since then, I do not see Aunt Mille in the same way!Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) was a Danish author, poet and artist. Celebrated for children’s literature, his most cherished fairy tales include The Emperor s New Clothes , The Little Mermaid , The Nightingale , The Steadfast Tin Soldier , The Snow Queen , The Ugly Duckling and The Little Match Girl . His books have been translated into every living language, and today there is no child or adult that has not met Andersen s whimsical characters. His fairy tales have been adapted to stage and screen countless times, most notably by Disney with the animated films The Little Mermaid in 1989 and Frozen , which is loosely based on The Snow Queen , in 2013. Thanks to Andersen s contribution to children s literature, his birth date, April 2, is celebrated as International Children s Book Day.
