Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children

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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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Fiction & Literature

Fiction by Genre

Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children

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American Tall Tales

Andersen's Fairy Tales

Asian Myths & Fairy Tales

Grimm's Fairy Tales

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Aesop's Fables

	Aesop and Company With Scenes from His Legendary Life by Aesop, prepared by Barbara Bader and illustrated by Arthur Geisert from Sandpiper Books for Preschool-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Aesop's Fables Illustrated Junior Library Series 4 by Aesop, illustrated by Fritz Kredel from Grosset & Dunlap Fables for 2nd-6th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Michael Hague from Henry Holt and Company Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, edited by Ann McGovern from Scholastic Inc. for Nursery-2nd grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT) $2.50 (3 in stock)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Arthur Rackham from Avenel Books for Nursery-2nd grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT) $8.00 (2 in stock)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, retold & illustrated by Jerry Pinkney 1st Ed. from Chronicle Books for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $19.99
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Heidi Holder 1^st edition from Viking Press for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $7.50 (2 in stock)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Charles Santore 1988 ed from Dilithium Press, Ltd. for Kindergarten-2nd grade in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, Isaac Bashevis Singer from International Collectors Library for 6th-10th grade in Ancient Literature (Location: LIT1-ANC)
	Aesop's Fables Illustrated Junior Library Series 2 by Aesop, illustrated by Fritz Kredel from Grosset & Dunlap for 2nd-6th grade in Illustrated Junior Library (Location: VIN-IJL)
	Aesop's Fables Puffin Classics by Aesop Reprint from Puffin Books Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Kindergarten-4th grade in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF) $7.99
	Aesop's Fables Children's Classics by Aesop, illustrated by Nora Fry from Dilithium Press, Ltd. for 2nd-6th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)
	Aesop's Fables Illustrated Junior Library Series 1 by Aesop, illustrated by Fritz Kredel from Grosset & Dunlap for 2nd-6th grade in Illustrated Junior Library (Location: VIN-IJL)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Harry Rountree from Gallery Books for 3rd-9th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT) $14.00 (1 in stock)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, Illustrated by Walt Sturrock from Unicorn Publishing House for Kindergarten-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Arthur Rackham from Macmillan Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-Adult in Ancient Literature (Location: LIT1-ANC) $14.99
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, illustrated by Michael Hague from Henry Holt and Company Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 1st-5th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Aesop's Fables by Aesop, retold by Anne Terry White, illustrated by Helen Siegl from California State Department of Education for 2nd-4th grade in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
	Eric Carle's Treasury of Classic Stories for Children by Aesop, Hans Christian Andersen, the Brothers Grimm, retold & illustrated by Eric Carle from Scholastic Inc. for 3rd-6th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)
	Fables of Aesop Dover Evergreen Classics by Joseph Jacobs from Dover Publications for 2nd-4th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT) $5.99
	Fables of Aesop by Aesop, illustrated by Edward J. Detmold from Gramercy Books for Kindergarten-4th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT)
	Fables of Aesop by Aesop, selected & illustrated by David Levine, translated by Patrick & Justina Gregory from Gambit for 2nd-4th grade in Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Children (Location: FIC-MYT) $7.50 (1 in stock)
	Grasshopper and the Ants by Jerry Pinkney from Little, Brown & Company for Preschool-2nd grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $18.99
	Lion and the Mouse Step into Reading Level 1 by Gail Herman from Random House for Preschool-kindergarten in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP) $4.99 $2.50 (7 in stock)

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