I would use this in a 4th or 5th grade class. It's very short, and has a lot of elements of fairy tales in it. If I used it in a younger class, maybe 2nd or 3rd, then I would ask students questions about why we know this story is fiction. ( )

The Seven Ravens is a classic tale by the Brothers Grimm and was adapted by Laura Geringer. This folk tale is about a very special young girl who is, "as beautiful as the sun is hot, as brave as the moon is cold, and as gentle and faithful as the stars are bright." Her parents loved her very much, however she noticed that they were sad. One day she finds a trunk of beautiful clothes. There were seven shirts, the girl wore the smallest shirt to dinner to make her parents happy. Her parents got really upset and explained that when she was a baby they thought she was ill. She had seven brothers who woke her up. Their father wished that all of the brothers would turn into ravens and fly away. and they did. SO the girl went on a quest to find her seven brothers and return them home. In order for her parents to be happy again. This is such an excellent tale I do not want to spoil the ending. A much needed read. I enjoyed this book very much and you should always be careful for what you wish for. ( )

The Seven Ravens is a story about a loving, little girl's search for her brothers. As a child she did not know she had brothers. one day she found a box under her parent's bed that was filled with small embroidered shirts. When she wore one of the shirts in front of her parents their sadness was expressed and she learned that her father had said words that had cursed the boys and they turned into ravens. The girl sets out on a journey to find her brothers. Along the way she met the sun and the moon, both damage one of the shirts she was wearing. Next she meets a dwarf who tells her the brothers live in the Glass Mountain. She is magically transported there and places their shirts on the chair backs. Soon the ravens fly in and see the shirts. They recognize them from their childhood and put them on. The curse was broken and the ravens turned into boys again. Sadly only six of the brothers were in the hall. Then an injured raven came into the room. The little girl gave him food and water and then repaired the damaged shirt with a needle she had received from the dwarf. The raven was restored to perfect health and with the family on his back, he flew them to the family's home. When they reached their destination, the raven put on his shirt and the children headed for home.