"More Fairy Tales from Efteling" by Martijn van der Linden

In case you don't know, Efteling is a fairy tale and fantasy theme park in Europe (in Amsterdam) rivaling Disney World in its extravagance, with one difference: it doesn't use quite the uniquely-branded version of fairy tales Disney does. (Note: the site appears to have had a recent upgrade since I last visited and it's a little difficult to fid my way around in there but you should be able to find the attractions pages - there are 4 - and the tickets etc page.)

Thumbelina by Martijn van der Linden

Summary from a travel website:

Built in the 1950s, and one of the leading theme parks in Europe, the popular theme park of Eftling is a must for children of all ages. Its fairytale theme captivates children and transports them into their favourite imaginary world. Complete with a fairy tale forest, lakes and trails, kids will delight at the 1895 steam carousel, the award-winning Fairy Tale stage show, the Adventure Maze, and the wooden roller coaster called Pegasus.

Here are some commercials for Efteling (in Dutch I think) to give you an idea of what the park is like (looks amazing!). The commercials are from many different years:


Like Disney World, though, the theme park does have things for sale in keeping with the park's themes and content. Some of those are books of fairy tales, presented by Eftling with artists they commission.

Here are some (more) of the gorgeous illustrations by Martijn van der Linden for a volume released in November 2011:

Unknown fairy tale by Martijn van der Linden

The Snow Queen by Martijn van der Linden 

The Ugly Duckling by Martijn van der Linden

The Steadfast Tin Soldier by Martijn van der Linden

Jorinde & Joringel by Martijn van der Linden

The Fisherman & HIs Wife by Martijn van der Linden

Lovely aren't they? You can order it through HERE I believe (if you're savvy about buying something in Euros) or through the theme park.


You can find lots more work by the artist on his blog HERE and a little more in his online portfolio HERE. Unfortunately, he doesn't say too much about this book or about the tales. The online translator comes up with "Tales of the Big Ben", which isn't much help as I don't understand a title like that in this context.


You can see the book is titled "More Fairy Tales From Eftling", which implies other volumes, and the text is also in English. (Perhaps that's the most common language among all their visitors?) I wish I had more information to give you but I can't even seem to find this book again in my searches now (thank goodness I bookmarked).