The Nightingale by Hans Christian Andersen, illustrated by Beni Montresor. 1985 first edition.

Written by Hans Christian Andersen. Adapted by Alan Benjamin. Illustrated by Beni Montresor. First Edition, 1985. Crown Publishers, Inc. New York.

"The Emperor of China lived in a palace more splendid than any other in the world. It was fashioned of gleaming porcelain, so fine and so fragile that light could pass through its gilded walls. The palace gardens were filled with the rarest of flowers, some of which were hung with tiny silver bells tht trembled and tinkled in the breeze, so that no one could pass by without noticing them. The gardens stretched so far in every direction that not een the chief gardener knew where they ended.

"If you wandered long enough, or far enough, you would find yourself in a forest whose towering trees were mirrored in a hundred glittering lakes. Among these trees lived a nightingale. Her song was so sweet that even the poor fisherman, who had much else to think about, would stop to listen while drawing in his nets at night. ..."

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"Caldecott medalist Beni Montresor has created a magical world of translucent color and light... He brings a mysterious vision to the moving story of a little gray nightingale who rescues a Chinese emperor from death. In the silence of the night, the dying emperor finally listens to the bird's song and is miraculously restored to health."

Beni Montresor (1926 - 2001) was an Italian artist, opera and film director, set designer, author, and children's book illustrator. He earned the Caldecott Medal in 1965 for May I Bring a Friend? His contributions to the arts were recognized by the Italian government, which knighted him in 1966. Montresor's creative genius was not confined to one medium; he worked with notable film directors like Federico Fellini and designed for grand opera stages such as La Scala and the Metropolitan Opera.

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Condition: Fine/Very Good. Dust jacket: Price-clipped; light shelf wear; light wear along upper and lower edges, front and back. Blue cloth cover boards with gold design. Pages are clean, undamaged, and complete.