To every child born, God offers a gift - this gift is not placed in their cradle, but in a secret place, where no one would dream of looking for it. So, this gift can be found in many different places, even in a simple stick…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.
