Fables and Fairy Tales: Aesop's Fables, Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales, Grimm's Fairy Tales, and The Blue Fairy Book

Aesop · Hans Christian Andersen · The Brothers Grimm · Andrew Lang

stb 2017 · Open Road Media

À propos de cet e-book

Four timeless anthologies of cherished fables, fairy tales, and bedtime stories from Aesop, Hans Christian Andersen, the Brothers Grimm, and Andrew Lang.
 
The most enchanting stories of childhood are included in this sweeping collection. These are the classic tales—of princes and princesses, monsters and magic, enchanted forests and fantastic creatures—that have thrilled readers around the world for generations.
 
Aesop’s Fables: In ancient Greece, a storyteller named Aesop captivated his listeners with tales both beautiful and instructive. From “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” to “The Tortoise and the Hare,” his fables retain the power to guide and entertain.
 
Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales: Inspired by ancient Danish legends as well as Arabian Nights, Andersen’s classic stories—including “The Emperor’s New Clothes” and “The Snow Queen” (the basis for Frozen)—are composed with a directness that children and adults still find refreshing.
 
The Brothers Grimm: From “Rapunzel” to “Hansel and Gretel” to “Little Red Riding Hood,” the German folktales the Brothers Grimm brought to the world’s attention have become part of the very fabric of our culture.
 
The Blue Fairy Book: Originally published in 1889, this first volume of Andrew Lang’s renowned Fairy Books includes such favorites as “Beauty and the Beast,” “Puss in Boots,” “Aladdin,” and “Jack the Giant-Killer.”
 
To read these stories is to be transported to a realm of imagination. Here, the most important life lessons are imparted through the irresistible magic of storytelling.

À propos de l'auteur

Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) was a Danish poet and author. Born to a shoemaker and a washerwoman, Andersen worked as an actor and a tailor’s apprentice before becoming a writer. Although he wrote many plays, novels, poems, and travelogues, Andersen is best known for his fairy tales. His birthday, April 2, is celebrated as International Children’s Book Day. 
 
The Brothers Grimm, Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm (1786–1859), were scholars best known for their lifelong dedication to collecting and publishing ancient German folk tales. Their groundbreaking Kinder- und Hausmärchen (Children’s and Household Tales) was published in seven different editions between 1812 and 1857 and brought to the world’s attention such unforgettable characters as Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Rapunzel, and Snow White. 
 
According to legend, Aesop (620–564 BCE) spent much of his early life as a slave before earning his freedom with cleverness. No trace of his original writings survives, but Aesop’s fables were transcribed by others and passed down through the ages. In 1484 the first printed edition spurred a wave of translations around the world. Today his tales of moral instruction are some of the most cherished stories in the world.
 
Andrew Lang (1844-1912) was a Scottish scholar and writer, best known for his folklore and mythological tales. After college, he moved to London and began working as a journalist. He began collecting fairytales and folklore stories for his first collection, The Blue Fairy Book. The Fairy Books contained hundreds of pages of folklore stories, which Lang edited while his wife helped translate. Receiving acclaim, the books totaled in 427 stories combined in twelve collections. Lang also produced his own original writing, including novels, literary criticism, and poetry, but his work did not attain the same literary recognition.