Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children

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.
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64 Items found Print
Active Filters: Action & Adventure Stories
Adventures of Robin Hood
Puffin Classics
by Roger Green, illustrated by Arthur Hall
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Adventures of Robin Hood
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Roger Green, illustrated by Walter Crane
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
$20.00
Adventures of Robin Hood
Puffin Classics
by Roger Green, illustrated by Arthur Hall
from Puffin Books
Legends and Folklore for 5th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Alex O'Donnell and the 40 CyberThieves
by Regina Doman
from Chesterton Press
for 7th-10th grade
Anpao
by Jamake Highwater
from HarperCollins
for 5th-9th grade
1978 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Battle of the Labyrinth
Percy Jackson & the Olympians #4
by Rick Riordan
from Hyperion/Madison Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Beowulf the Warrior
by Ian Serraillier
from Bethlehem Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$11.95
Book of Legends
by Horace E. Scudder
from Yesterday's Classics
for 1st-5th grade
$9.95
ECL: Book of King Arthur
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Ron King
for 4th-8th grade
in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
ECL: Pinocchio
Educator Classic Library #3
by Carlo Collodi, translated by Joseph Walker and illustrated by William Dempster
Complete and Unabridged Edition from Classic Press
in Educator Classic Library (Location: VIN-ECL)
Famous Legends Adapted for Children
by Emeline G. Crommelin
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 5th-9th grade
$7.99
Fifty Famous Stories Retold
by James Baldwin
from Yesterday's Classics
for 1st-4th grade
$11.95
Fifty Famous Stories Retold
by James Baldwin
from Living Book Press
for 1st-4th grade
$8.99
Gilgamesh the Hero
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Eerdmans
for 4th-8th grade
$20.00
Great Deeds of Superheroes
by Maurice Saxby, Robert Ingpen
from Peter Bedrick Books
for 4th-9th grade
Howard Pyle King Arthur Series
by Howard Pyle
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Jack Plank Tells Tales
by Natalie Babbitt
First Edition (first thus) from MDC Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
King Arthur
by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H.J. Ford
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
$7.99
King Arthur and His Knights
by Maude Redford Warren
2nd edition from Yesterday's Classics
Arthurian Legends and Myths for
$11.95
King Arthur and His Knights
by Sir James Knowles, illustrated by Louis Rhead and other artists
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
for 5th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Roger Green
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10th grade
$22.00
King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table
Puffin Classics
by Roger Green
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 6th-10th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99
King Arthur and His Noble Knights
by Mary MacLeod, illustrated by Henry C. Pitz
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
King of Ireland's Son
by Padraic Colum
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-7th grade
$14.95
Last Olympian
Percy Jackson & the Olympians #5
by Rick Riordan
Reprint from Hyperion/Madison Press
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Light Beyond the Forest
Arthurian Trilogy #2
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Light Beyond the Forest
Arthurian Trilogy #2
by Rosemary Sutcliff, illustrated by Shirley Felts
from E.P. Dutton & Co.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merlin and the Making of the King
by Margaret Hodges
4th Edition from Holiday House
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Merry Adventures of Robin Hood
Sterling Classics
by Howard Pyle, illustrated by Scott McKowen
Unabridged from Sterling Publishing Co.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
Odyssey (retold)
by Robin Lister & Alan Baker
from Kingfisher
for 7th-9th grade
Road to Camlann
Arthurian Trilogy #3
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Road to Camlann
Arthurian Trilogy #3
by Rosemary Sutcliff
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Robin Hood
by Louis Rhead, illustrated in color by Frank Godwin
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Robin Hood of Sherwood Forest
by Ann McGovern
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$2.50 (3 in stock)
Rowan Hood
by Nancy Springer
from Scholastic Inc.
for 3rd-6th grade
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor
by J. C. Mardrus (French rendering from the Arabic), translated by E. Powys Mathers and illustrated by Edward A. Wilson
from Heritage Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Seven Voyages of Sinbad the Sailor
by John Yeoman (reteller), illustrated by Quentin Blake
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 3rd-6th grade
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Stories of Beowulf Told to the Children
by H. E. Marshall
from Yesterday's Classics
Myth & Legend for 2nd-5th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$9.95
Stories of King Arthur's Knights Told to the Children
by George MacDonald
from T.C. & E.C. Jack
Fantasy for 4th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Stories of Robin Hood Told to the Children
by H. E. Marshall
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-5th grade
$9.95 $5.50 (1 in stock)
Stories of Roland Told to the Children
by H. E. Marshall
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-5th grade
$9.95
Stories of Siegfried Told to the Children
by Mary MacGregor
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-7th grade
$9.95
Story of King Arthur
by Children's Dover Thrift, Tom Crawford
from Dover Publications
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$1.50 (3 in stock)
Story of King Arthur and His Knights
Howard Pyle's King Arthur series book 1.
by Howard Pyle
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10tth grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$14.95
Story of King Arthur and His Knights
Howard Pyle's King Arthur series book 1.
by Howard Pyle
from Barnes & Noble
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10tth grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Story of Sir Launcelot and His Companions
Howard Pyle's King Arthur series book 3.
by Howard Pyle
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Story of the Champions of the Round Table
Howard Pyle's King Arthur series book 2
by Howard Pyle
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Sword and the Circle
Arthurian Trilogy #1
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Sword and the Circle
Arthurian Trilogy #1
by Rosemary Sutcliff
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Tale of the Cid: and Other Stories of Knights and Chivalry
by Andrew Lang
from Dover Publications
for 6th-Adult
$9.95
Tale of Troy
Puffin Classics
by Roger Green
from Puffin Books
Greek Mythology for 6th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$7.99
Tales from Silver Lands
by Charles J. Finger
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
1925 Newbery Medal winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99
Tales from Silver Lands
by Charles J. Finger
1971 printing from Doubleday & Company
for 4th-8th grade
1925 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
Tales of King Arthur
by James Riordan, illustrated by Victor Ambrus
from Hamlyn
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Tales of King Arthur and the Round Table
by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H.J. Ford
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
$8.99
Tales of Robin Hood
by Tony Allan, illustrated by Ron Tiner
from Usborne
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Tales of Robin Hood
by Anna Claybourne, Tony Allan, illustrated by Ron Tiner
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
The Adventures of Robin Hood (abridged)
by J. Walker McSpadden, Abridged by Christopher Stella, Illustrated by Greg Hildebrandt
from Courage Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Titan's Curse
Percy Jackson & the Olympians #3
by Rick Riordan
from Hyperion/Madison Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Tristan and Iseult
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Sunburst Book
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$15.99
Tristan and Iseult
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from E.P. Dutton & Co.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 7th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
Viking Tales
by Jennie Hall
from Yesterday's Classics
for 7th-10th grade
$10.95
Viking Tales
by Jennie Hall
from Living Book Press
for 1st-4th grade
$8.99
Winged Girl of Knossos
by Erick Berry
First Paul Dry Books from Paul Dry Books
for 4th-8th grade
1934 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$15.95