It is Christmas Eve, and Clara gets a very special gift--Captain Krak von Nuttenkopf of the Queen's Own Regiment. Captain Krak is a beautifully crafted nutcracker doll, carved out of wood and complete with a scarlet uniform, black boots, and a glittering sword. And then the most glorious adventure begins. Attacked by a ragtag band of rats, the nutcracker comes alive and musters up his toy soldiers. Fighting bravely against the invading rodent hordes, and with some help from Clara's slippers, Captain Krak defeats the Rat King and captures his crown. To celebrate, he takes Clara on a voyage to the magical Land of Sweets. For the Queen of the Land of Sweets is the nutcracker's mother. And lo and behold! Captain Krak is not a nutcracker anymore; he turns into the handsome Prince Krak, and takes Clara's hand, and...
Based on Tchaikovski's popular ballet, this is an enchanting retelling of the classic story. Nicki Palin's highly stylized illustrations, reminiscent of Norman Rockwell's art, create a wonderful, magical world. This is the ideal gift for the millions of children who see theatrical productions of The Nutcracker every year at Christmastime.
This book is aimed at children in primary school.
There are 32 pages in this book. This book was published 1999 by Oxford University Press .
Geraldine McCaughrean is the author of The Odyssey and other titles in the acclaimed Oxford Illustrated Classics series.
This book contains the following story:
The Nutcracker
It is Christmas Eve and the mysterious Dr. Drosselmeyer has arrived at Clara and Fritz's house with a special gift for Clara - a wooden nutcracker doll. The doll brings magic for when the clock strikes midnight Clara awakes to see a battle between giant mice and life-size toy soldiers, led by her valiant Nutcracker. After winning the battle, the Nutcracker is transformed into a handsome prince who takes Clara on a journey to the Land of Snow and then to the Kingdom of Sweets.
