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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87 Items found Print
Active Filters: Ancient Greece
Adventures of Ulysses
by Bernard Evslin
from Scholastic Inc.
Greek Mythology for 4th-6th grade
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$11.95
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$6.99
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church, illustrated by Eugene Karlin
1st Printing from Macmillan
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
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
Puffin Classics
by Aesop
Reprint from Puffin Books
Myths, Fairy Tales & Folklore for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$7.99
Atarax the Wolf Tells: Greek Myths
by Adam De Gree
from Classical Historian
for Kindergarten-2nd grade
in Clearance: History & Geography (Location: ZCLE-HIS)
$7.50
Beautiful Stories of Life
by Cynthia Rylant
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-7th grade
$17.99
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$22.99
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Laurel-Leaf Books
Greek Mythology for 4th-8th grade
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Book of Myths
by Helen Sewell
from Macmillan
for 4th-7th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
Brave Cloelia
by Jane Curry
1st edition from J. Paul Getty Museum
for 4th-6th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.95 $12.00 (1 in stock)
Children's Homer
by Padraic Colum & Willy Pogany
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$10.99 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Children's Homer
by Padraic Colum
from Simon and Schuster
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$4.50 (2 in stock)
Children's Homer
by Padraic Colum
from Simon and Brown
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Classic Myths to Read Aloud
by William F. Russell
from Three Rivers Press
in Reading Aloud & Story-telling (Location: LIR-RAST)
$16.00 $9.50 (1 in stock)
D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Yearling
Greek Mythology for 4th-8th grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$19.99
D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths - Audio CD
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Yearling
Greek Mythology for 4th-8th grade
in Audio Books & Dramas (Location: CD-AUDIO)
$25.00 $14.00 (1 in stock)
Favorite Greek Myths
by Mary Pope Osborne, illustrated by Troy Howell
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Favorite Greek Myths
by Mary Pope Osborne
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
Favorite Greek Myths
by Bob Blaisdell
from Dover Publications
for 4th-6th grade
$2.50 (2 in stock)
Gods and Goddesses of Olympus
by Aliki
from HarperCollins
for 1st-3rd grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$7.99
Golden Fleece
by Padraic Colum & Willy Pogany
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
1922 Newbery Honor Book
$10.99 $6.00 (2 in stock)
Greek Gods
by Bernard & Dorothy Evslin, Ned Hoopes, illustrated by William Hunter
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
$2.00 (20 in stock)
Greek Gods and Goddesses
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
Greek Myths
by Olivia Coolidge, illustrated by Edouard Sandoz
from Houghton Mifflin
Greek Mythology for 4th-6th grade
$10.99
Greek Myths
by Geraldine McCaughrean, illustrated by Emma Chichester Clark
from Margaret K. McElderry Books
for 3rd-6th grade
Greek Myths
by Marcia Williams
from Walker Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Oversized History Books (Location: HISW-OVER)
$8.99
Greek Myths
by Olivia Coolidge
from Houghton Mifflin
Greek Mythology for 4th-6th grade
Greek Myths: A Wonder Book for Girls and Boys
by Nathaniel Hawthorne, illustrated by Walter Crane
from Barnes & Noble
Myths for 5th-10th grade
Hercules
Heroes Series #4
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Cricket Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Hercules and Other Tales from Greek Myths
by Olivia Coolidge, illustrated by David Lockhart
from Scholastic Inc.
Greek Mythology for 2nd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Heroes
by Charles Kingsley
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-7th grade
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Heroes
by Charles Kingsley
from Living Book Press
for 4th-7th grade
$9.99
Heroes & Monsters Of Greek Myth
by Bernard Evslin, Dorthy Evslin, ned Hoopes
from Scholastic Inc.
for 5th-7th grade
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Iliad (retold)
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
Iliad and the Odyssey (retold)
by Jane Werner Watson, illustrated by Alice & Martin Provensen
from Golden Books
for 5th-9th grade
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-8th grade
$11.95
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
for 5th-8th grade
$7.99
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Macmillan
for 5th-8th grade
Odysseus
Heroes Series #1
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Cricket Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Odyssey (retold)
Puffin Classics
by Geraldine McCaughrean retells Homer
Puffin Classics from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$6.99 $4.00 (2 in stock)
Odyssey (retold)
by Robin Lister & Alan Baker
from Kingfisher
for 7th-9th grade
Odyssey for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-8th grade
$11.95
Odyssey for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
for 5th-8th grade
$7.99
Odyssey for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Macmillan
for 5th-8th grade
Pegasus
by Marianna Mayer & K. Y. Craft
1st ed from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Pegasus
by Marianna Mayer & K. Y. Craft
1st ed from Morrow Eagle
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Percy Jackson's Greek Gods
by Rick Riordan
from Disney-Hyperion
for 4th-8th grade
$12.99
Percy Jackson's Greek Heroes
by Rick Riordan
from Disney-Hyperion
for 4th-8th grade
$12.99
Persephone
by Sally Clayton, Illustrated by Virginia Lee
from Eerdmans
for 1st-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$20.00
Perseus
Heroes Series #2
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Cricket Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Song to Demeter
by Cynthia & William Birrer
from Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Golden Age of Greek Heroes
by James Baldwin
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$11.95
Story of the Iliad
by Alfred J. Church, edited and updated by Cyndy Shearer
from Greenleaf Press
Greek Mythology for 5th-8th grade
Story of the Iliad
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Greek Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$9.99
Story of the Odyssey
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Greek Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$8.99
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 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Tales of the Greek Heroes
Puffin Classics
by Roger Green
from Puffin Books
Greek Mythology for 6th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99
Tales of Troy and Greece
by Andrew Lang
from Faber & Faber
for 3rd-6th grade
Tales of Troy and Greece
by Andrew Lang
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
Tanglewood Tales
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Ill from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
$13.95 $8.00 (2 in stock)
Tanglewood Tales
Calla Editions
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Dover Publications
for 3rd-7th grade
Tanglewood Tales
Copper Lodge Library
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Classical Conversations
for 3rd-6th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$11.99
Tanglewood Tales
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Digibooks OOD
for 3rd-6th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Tanglewood Tales
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Ill from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
$16.99
Theseus
Heroes Series #3
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Cricket Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Theseus and the Minotaur
by Leonard Everett Fisher
from Holiday House
for 3rd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Theseus and the Minotaur
by Leonard Everett Fisher
from Holiday House
for 3rd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
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
Trojan Horse
Step Into Reading Level 5
by Emily Little
from Random House
Greek Mythology for 2nd-4th grade
in Step into Reading (Location: EAR-STEP)
$4.99 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Trojan War
by Olivia Coolidge, illustrated by Edouard Sandoz
from Houghton Mifflin
Mythology for 4th-6th grade
$9.99
Trojan War
by Olivia Coolidge, illustrated by Edouard Sandoz
from Houghton Mifflin
Mythology for 4th-6th grade
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Usborne Greek Myths
by Heather Amery
from Usborne
for 2nd-3rd grade
$4.05 (1 in stock)
Wanderings of Odysseus
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
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
Wonder Book
by Nathaniel Hawthorne, illustrated by Dick Cuffari
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-5th grade
Wonder Book
Windermere Readers #1
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
1954 Edition from Rand McNally
for 3rd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Wonder Book
Windermere Series 1
by Nathaniel Hawthorne, illustrated by Milo Winter
from Rand McNally
for 3rd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Wonder Book
Windermere Series 2
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Rand McNally
for 3rd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Wonder Book
Windermere Series 3
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Rand McNally
for 3rd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Wonder Book
Windermere Series 4
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Rand McNally
for 3rd-5th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Wonder Book / Nonsense Books
by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Edward Lear
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-5th grade
in Companion Library (Location: VIN-FIC)
Wonder Book for Girls and Boys
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Yesterday's Classics
Myths for 5th-10th grade
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Wonder Book for Girls and Boys
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Living Book Press
Myths for 5th-10th grade
$15.99
Wonder Book: Heroes & Monsters of Greek Mythology
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Dover Publications
Myths for 5th-10th grade
$5.99
Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 5th-10th grade
$17.00