Reading this shortened children’s edition once again along with the full version in The Complete Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen. The only real difference is the violence. Here, the old witch is ‘killed’ by the soldier with his sword, the soldier is imprisoned for periodically kidnapping the sleeping princess each night before summoning the three dogs for help who scare the king’s men into fleeing, and the king and queen are ‘seized’ by the dogs who then run away with them, the royals never to be seen again. Whereas in the full version, the witch is beheaded by the soldier with his sword, he’s about to be hanged before summoning help, and the King and Queen – along with the judge and all the council members – are tossed many feet into the air by the dogs, dying when all of their bones are broken upon landing.

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