British Fairy Tales

British folklore wasn’t born on a page - it was forged in the firelight. Forget the watered-down, gentle retellings of your childhood. Joseph Jacobs’ "English Fairy Tales" restores the raw, pulse-pounding energy of the original oral tradition. These are the "low" tales of the countryside...

While fairy tales were not originally intended for children, they have become a staple of children's literature since the early 19th century. Here is a collection of English fairy tales, including many stories you will remember from childhood.

George MacDonald, described by W.H. Auden as "one of the most remarkable writers of the 19th century", was valued in his own time as an original thinker and spiritual guide. Of all his writing, it is the fairy tales that have retained their fascination, and this collection includes all 11 stories. The fairy tales feature the stock characters of traditional tales—fairies both good and bad, and children undertaking precarious journeys. Often adopting paradox and nonsense as Lewis Carroll did, the stories invite adults to deploy the same open-mindedness as children.

“Eloisa James is extraordinary.” —Lisa Kleypas “Nothing gets me to the bookstore faster than a new novel by Eloisa James.” —Julia Quinn New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James gives the classic Hans Christian Andersen story of “The Ugly Duckling” a wonderful, witty, and...

Do you read bedtime stories for your child? Don't modern heroes seems too boring to you? Try to plunge into the fairy tale world filled with ancient, magical creatures: elves, fairies, mermaids, dragons... This fairy tale storybook is dedicated to ancient folktales from around the world. Many of them are lost, but some have still managed to reach our era. We travel, together, all around the world. We sink into the old tales that speak of magic we still don’t fully understand. We look for answers, but — perhaps more importantly — we look for questions: for that spirit that makes us ...

Introducing an instant classic--master storyteller Neil Gaiman presents a dazzling version of the great Norse myths. Neil Gaiman has long been inspired by ancient mythology in creating the fantastical realms of his fiction. Now he turns his attention back to the source, presenting a bravura...

George Brisbane Scott Douglas (1856-1935), the Scottish poet and writer, published the book Scottish Fairy and Folk Tales in 1901. The literary genres of the book include comic, literary, nursery, and animal stories plus fairy tales of mythic creatures like the brownies, bogles, kelpies, and mermaids. Classified, tabulated, and scientifically labelled, these imaginative narratives are related in vernacular language, and have a timeless appeal to adults and children alike. Amongst the most popular stories are "The Fox’s Stratagem", and "The Bee and the Mouse".

Miss Mildred Percy is a spinster. She does not dance, she has long stopped dreaming, and she certainly does not have adventures. That is, until her great uncle has the audacity to leave her an inheritance, one that includes a dragon’s egg. The egg—as eggs are wont to do—decides to hatch, and Miss Mildred Percy is suddenly thrust out of the role of “spinster and general wallflower” and into the unprecedented position of “spinster and keeper of dragons.” But England has not seen a dragon since…well, ever.

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Thursday Next series comes “a political satire cloaked in Fforde’s trademark bizarre whimsy . . . [that] reads like a crazed cross between Watership Down and Nineteen Eighty-Four” (The Guardian). “Playful, biting, and timely, this is a...

From the author of Rise and Shine Benedict Stone, now an original movie on Hallmark. “Sweet and resonant.” —People, “Best New Books” Pick A librarian’s discovery of a mysterious book sparks the journey of a lifetime. Librarian Martha Storm has always found it easier to connect with...

A comprehensive retelling of King Arthur’s legend that breathes new life into the classic tale, from cohost of the Myths and Legends podcast, Carissa Weiser. Logris is a land torn asunder, plagued by invasions, assassinations, and anarchy. Rulers rise and fall, and so the tide turns. The land...

Hans Christian Andersen was the profoundly imaginative writer and storyteller who revolutionized literature for children. He gave us the now standard versions of some traditional fairy tales—with an anarchic twist—but many of his most famous tales sprang directly from his imagination. The...

'Jeffs narrates these interconnected tales with warmth, intimacy and a subtle undercurrent of menace' Guardian (Audiobook of the Week) Enriched for audio with specially commissioned music based on traditional melodies, Old Songs fuses short stories, histories, lyrics and music in an enthralling...

FIVE FAIRYTALES. NINE KINGDOMS. ONE PRINCE. 'This is not your Disney fairy tale. It is much, much better' WILDER'S BOOK REVIEW 'Brilliantly subverts the classic fairy tale' ONE CHAPTER MORE 'Loads of fun . . . Exposes the patriarchal, oppressive fairytale world order which we take for granted in...

Brought to you by Penguin. Travel along with actor and podcaster Tim Downie as he explores the strange and beautiful places that have shaped British folklore. Tim brings to life the mystical stories that shape the character of our isles. Push through the bramble and briar to embark on a journey...

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY The Washington Post Los Angeles Times San Francisco Chronicle Harper’s Bazaar St. Louis Post-Dispatch The Guardian The Kansas City Star National Post BookPage Kirkus Reviews From Salman...

Discover a powerful and relatable poetry collection of love, loss, and healing -- perfect for fans of Rupi Kaur and Amanda Lovelace. In this magical poetry collection, Nikita Gill unflinchingly explores the fire in every woman and the emotions that lie deep in one's soul. Featuring rewritten...

Joseph Jacobs (1854-1916) was a prominent member of the English Folklore Society. English Fairy Tales is a collection of 87 classic English fairy tales collected and edited by Jacobs who had spent 10 years collecting them from written and oral sources. His style was chosen to appeal to young people.

"Exhilarating...A wildly imagined, head-spinning, deeply intelligent novel." - The New York Times Book Review "[W]ildly inventive…[Helen Oyeyemi's] prose is not without its playful bite." –Vogue The prize-winning, bestselling author of Boy Snow Bird, What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours, and...

A splendid collection of both well loved and little known fairy stories which have entertained and delighted children for many generations.