Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children

Store Location

Not that these are "soft" versions of the fairy tales we know and love—they're just not quite as jarring as the original material. Whereas the Brothers Grimm didn't hesitate to include excessive violence, genuine terror and even (on occasion) sexual references, authors like Andrew Lang opted to gentle the stories a bit so as not to spook the youngsters too much. While we certainly encourage you to read the originals and introduce them to your kids at some point, the books you'll find in this section are a great place to start small children on traditional tales and folklore.

It's not so much that fairy tales offer kids a new way of seeing the world, it's more that they are already in line with the way kids do see the world. For a child, monsters really do lurk in the shadows, pumpkins can turn into vehicles, and animals really do have rational thoughts and can even (at times, if you listen closely enough) talk. To force children into an adult world where only the unavoidable and routine can take place is to rob them of not only their youth, but their ability to imagine.

More than any other kind of story, fairy tales are only a segue to genuine creativity. Kids read about Princes Charming, Princesses in Distress, Dragons, Dragon-Fighters, dwarfs, elves and pixies—and then become each of these things in turn in the backyard. Not that most children need inspiration, but it certainly can't hurt, nor can it hurt for them to realize they aren't the first ones to imagine fairies in the trees and gnomes in the garden. We've chosen the books you'll find here for the quality of artwork, faithfulness of adaptation, and overall appeal both to kids and their parents (who may have missed out on good fairy tales themselves).

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

Did you find this review helpful?

Parent Categories

Fiction & Literature

Fiction by Genre

Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children

Subcategories

American Tall Tales

Andersen's Fairy Tales

Asian Myths & Fairy Tales

Grimm's Fairy Tales

31 Items found Print

Active Filters:

Asia,

Picture Books

	Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave by written by Marianna Mayer, Illustrated by K. Y. Craft First Edition from HarperCollins for Preschool- 3rd Grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $17.99
	Cricket's Cage A Chinese Folktale by Stefan Czernecki from Hyperion Books for Children for Kindergarten-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Finist the Falcon Prince A Russian Folk Tale by Translated by Lydia Regehr from a story by Andrei Platonov, Illustrated by Mary Chagnon from Carolrhoda Books, Inc. for 1st-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Fool of the World and the Flying Ship A Russian Tale by Arthur Ransome from Farrar, Straus and Giroux Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-4th grade 1969 Caldecott Medal winner in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $24.99
	Fool of the World and the Flying Ship A Russian Tale by Arthur Ransome, illustrated by Uri Shulevitz from Sunburst Book Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-4th grade 1969 Caldecott Medal winner in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $10.00 (1 in stock)
	Indian Tales A Barefoot Collection by Shenaaz Nanji from Barefoot Books for 3rd-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Korean Cinderella by Shirley Climo & Ruth Heller from HarperCollins for 3rd-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $8.99
	Little Humpbacked Horse A Russian Tale by Adapted by Elizabeth Winthrop, Illustrated by Alexander Koshkin from Clarion Books for Kindergarten-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Lon Po Po A Red-Riding Hood Story from China by Ed Young from PaperStar Books Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-4th grade 1990 Caldecott Medal winner in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $6.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Magic Brush by Robert B. Goodman & Robert A. Spicer (adapters), illustrated by Y. T. Mui, edited by Ruth Tabrah from Island Heritage Publishing for Preschool-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $10.00 (1 in stock)
	Magic Fan by Keith Baker from Sandpiper Books for Preschool-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $8.00
	Ming Lo Moves the Mountain by Arnold Lobel from HarperCollins for Nursery-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $9.99
	Monkey and the Crocodile A Jataka Tale from India by Paul Galdone from HMH Books for Young Readers for Preschool-1st grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $9.99
	Monkey and the Crocodile A Jataka Tale from India by Paul Galdone from Houghton Mifflin for Preschool-1st grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	One Grain of Rice by Demi from Scholastic Press for Nursery-Kindergarten in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $21.99 $15.00 (1 in stock)
	Prince Ivan and the Firebird by Bernard Lodge from Whispering Coyote Press for Preschool-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $4.50 (1 in stock)
	Seeing Stick by Jane Yolen Reprint from Running Press for 1st-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mahy, illustrated by Jean and Mou-sien Tseng from Scholastic Inc. for Nursery-1st grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $3.00 (1 in stock)
	Seven Chinese Brothers by Margaret Mahy, illustrated by Jean and Mou-sien Tseng from Scholastic Inc. for Nursery-1st grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Seven Simeons A Russian Tale by Boris Artzybasheff from Viking Press for Preschool- 3rd Grade 1938 Caldecott Honor Book in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Shibumi and the Kitemaker by Mercer Mayer from Marshall Cavendish Education for 1st-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Snow Princess by Ruth Sanderson from Crocodile Books for Preschool-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $17.95
	Tale of the Mandarin Ducks by Katherine Paterson from Puffin Books for Preschool- 3rd Grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $8.99
	Tale of Two Rice Birds A Folktale from Thailand by Adapted by Clare Hodgson Meeker, Illustrated by Christine Lamb from Sasquatch Books for 1st-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $9.00 (1 in stock)
	Tales from Indian Classics Book III by Savitri (reteller), illustrated by Sukumar Chatterjee from Children's Book Press for 2nd-6th grade in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Tiger and the Brahmin by Brian Gleeson from Simon and Schuster for 1st-3rd grade in Tools for Young Historians (Location: BIBWV-TYH)
	Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene Mosel from Square Fish Publishing Humorous Folk Tale for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $8.99
	Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene Mosel from Henry Holt and Company Humorous Folk Tale for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Weaving of a Dream by Marilee Heyer Reissue from Puffin Books for 3rd-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Willow Pattern Story by Allan Drummond from North-South Books for Kindergarten-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $6.00 (2 in stock)
	Yeh-Shen A Cinderella Story from China by Ai-Ling Louie from Puffin Books for Preschool-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)

Shop

Support

Hours & Directions

Connect