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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123 Items found Print
Active Filters: 9th grade (Ages 14-15)
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
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
by Aesop, illustrated by Harry Rountree
from Gallery Books
for 3rd-9th grade
$14.00 (1 in stock)
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
Aladdin and Other Tales from the Arabian Nights
by Anonymous, illustrated by William Heath Robinson
from Everyman's Library
for 6th-9th grade
$17.95 $10.00 (2 in stock)
Alex O'Donnell and the 40 CyberThieves
by Regina Doman
from Chesterton Press
for 7th-10th grade
American Fairy Tales
1st edition from Hyperion Books for Children
for 3rd-Adult
Annotated Brothers Grimm
by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm
Bicentennial from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Annotated Classic Fairy Tales
by Maria Tatar
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 8th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Annotated Hans Christian Andersen
by Hans Christian Andersen
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Annotated Hans Christian Andersen
by Hans Christian Andersen
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$18.00 (1 in stock)
Anpao
by Jamake Highwater
from HarperCollins
for 5th-9th grade
1978 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Arabian Nights
Calla Editions
by Rene Bull (Illustrator)
Reprint from Dover Publications
for 4th-9th grade
Arabian Nights
Children's Classics
by Rene Bull, illustrator
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
for 4th-9th grade
Arabian Nights
by Amabel Williams-Ellis, illustrated by Pauline Baynes
from Blackie & Son LTD.
for 9th-Adult
Arabian Nights
by Kate Douglas Wiggin and Nora A. Smith, editors, illustrated by Maxfield Parrish
from Book-of-the-Month Club
Eastern Fairy Tales for 9th-Adult
Arctic Twilight
by Samuli Paulaharju
1982 Edition from Finnish American Literary Heritage Foundation
for 7th-Adult
$12.00 (1 in stock)
At the Back of the North Wind
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Arthur Hughes
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
$20.00
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, Illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith
from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Frank C. Pape
from Living Book Press
for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$12.99
At the Back of the North Wind
by George MacDonald, Illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith
from David McKay Company
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Beauty
by Robin McKinley
First Paperback Edition, 2018 from Greenwillow Books
Fantasy/Retold Fairy Tale for 5th-8th grade
$7.99
Beowulf
by Robert Nye
from Laurel-Leaf Books
for 6th-10th grade
$5.99
Better Known as Johnny Appleseed
by Mabel Leigh Hunt, illustrated by James Daugherty
from J.B. Lippincott Co.
for 5th-9th grade
1951 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
Black as Night
by Regina Doman
2nd edition from Chesterton Press
Modern Fairy Tale for
Canterbury Tales
by A. Kent & Constance Hieatt, illustrated by Gustaf Tenggren
from Golden Press
for 5th-9th grade
Complete Fairy Tales
Penguin Classics
by George MacDonald
from Penguin Classics
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Folklore for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$17.00
Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm
3rd edition from Bantam Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Folklore for 7th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$24.00
Complete Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm
by Wilhelm Grimm, Jacob Grimm
from International Collectors Library
for 5th-10th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Complete Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales
by Hans Christian Anderson
from Avenel Books
for 8th-Adult
Complete Illustrated Stories of the Brothers Grimm
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by E.H. Wehnert
Redesigned Edition (1st Edition in this form) from Chancellor Press
for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
East O' the Sun and West O' the Moon
Junior Deluxe Editions
by P. C. Asbjornsen, illustrated by Walter Seaton
from Nelson Doubleday, Inc.
for 6th-9th grade
Fairy Tales from the Arabian Nights
Dent & Dutton Illustrated Series
by E. Dixon, illustrated by Joan Kiddell-Monroe
from E.P. Dutton & Co.
for 9th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Famous Legends Adapted for Children
by Emeline G. Crommelin
2022 Reprint from Living Book Press
for 5th-9th grade
$7.99
Fantasy Stories of George Macdonald - 4 Book Set
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Craig Yoe
from Eerdmans
Fantasy for 3rd-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Favorite Folktales from Around the World
by Jane Yolen
from Pantheon Books
for 4th-Adult
in Short Story Anthologies for Kids (Location: FIC-ANTH)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Fearless Girls, Wise Women, and Beloved Sisters
by Kathleen Ragan, Foreword by Jane Yolen
from W. W. Norton and Co.
for 5th-Adult
in Short Story Anthologies for Kids (Location: FIC-ANTH)
$16.95
Gifts of the Child Christ - 2 Volume Set
by George MacDonald
from Eerdmans
for 5th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Golden
Once Upon a Time Series
by Cameron Dokey
from Simon Pulse
for 6th-9th grade
$8.99
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
by Gennady Spirin
from Marshall Cavendish Education
for 9th-Adult
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Gray Wolf and Other Stories
by George MacDonald
2nd THUS from Eerdmans
for 7th-12th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$17.00
Gray Wolf and Other Stories
by George MacDonald
from Eerdmans
for 7th-12th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Great Deeds of Superheroes
by Maurice Saxby, Robert Ingpen
from Peter Bedrick Books
for 4th-9th 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
Green Willow and Other Japanese Fairy Tales
Calla Editions
by Grace James
from Dover Publications
for 7th-10th grade
Grimm's Fairy Tales
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Lucille Corcos
from Heritage Press
for 4th-10th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, selected & edited by Louis & Bryna Untermeyer and illustrated by Lucille Corcos
from Easton Press
for 4th-10th grade
in Leather Bound Collectible Books (Location: VIN-LEA)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Windermere Readers #4
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Hope Dunlap
1954 printing from Rand McNally
for 4th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Windermere Series 1
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Hope Dunlap
from Rand McNally
for 4th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Windermere Series 2
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Hope Dunlap
from Rand McNally
for 4th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Windermere Series 3
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Hope Dunlap
from Rand McNally
for 4th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
Windermere Series 4
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Hope Dunlap
from Rand McNally
for 4th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales
by Hans Christian Andersen
from Penguin Classics
for 5th-10th grade
Hans Christian Andersen: The Complete Fairy Tales and Stories
by Hans Christian Andersen, Translated by Erik Christian Haugaard
1983 Anchor Books Edition from Anchor Books
for 2nd-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$25.00
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)
Iliad and the Odyssey (retold)
by Jane Werner Watson, illustrated by Alice & Martin Provensen
from Golden Books
for 5th-9th grade
Illustrated Bulfinch's Mythology: Legends of Charlemagne
by Thomas Bulfinch
from Macmillan
for 6th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
It's Perfectly True
by Hans Christian Andersen, translated by Paul Leyssac and illustrated by Richard Bennett
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 5th-10th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Juniper Tree and Other Tales from Grimm
by Jacob & Wilhelm Grimm, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 7th-12th grade
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
$17.95
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
Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Stories
Illustrated Junior Library Series 4
by Washington Irving
from Grosset & Dunlap
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle
Dover Children's Thrift Classics
by Washington Irving
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
$4.00
Life and Death of Cormac the Skald
by W. G. Collingwood
from Living Book Press
for 9th-Adult
$7.99
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)
Merry Ballads of Robin Hood
by Laurabelle Dietrick, assisted by Joseph Franz-Walsh and illustrated by Edna Reindel
from Macmillan
Songs and Ballads for 7th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Midnight Dancers
by Regina Doman
1st edition from Chesterton Press
Modern Fairy Tale for
Miracle on 34th Street
by Valentine Davies
from Harcourt
Realistic Fairy Tale for 6th-9th Grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$14.99
Miracle On 34th Street
by Valentine Davies
from Clarion Books
Realistic Fairy Tale for 6th-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Miracle On 34th Street
by Valentine Davies, illustrated by Tomie DePaola
from Harcourt Brace Jovanich
Realistic Fairy Tale for 6th-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
Myths and Folk Tales Around the World
by Robert R. Potter
from Globe Book Company
for 6th-Adult
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Myths of the Norsemen
Puffin Classics
by Roger Lancelyn Green
Reprint from Puffin Books
for 5th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99
Myths of the Norsemen
by H.A. Guerber
from Dover Publications
for 6th-10th grade
$14.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Norse Myths
by Kevin Crossley-Holland
Pantheon Fairy Tale and Folklore Library from Pantheon Books
for 7th-10th grade
Odyssey (retold)
by Robin Lister & Alan Baker
from Kingfisher
for 7th-9th grade
Odyssey (retold)
by Gillian Cross
from Candlewick Press
for 6th-9th grade
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Perrault's Fairy Tales
by Charles Perrault, Gustave Dore
from Dover Publications
for 5th-10th grade
$12.95
Princess and Curdie
Puffin Classics
by George MacDonald
from Puffin Books
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Princess and Curdie
by George MacDonald
from Living Book Press
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99
Princess and Curdie
by George MacDonald
from Canon Press
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.95
Questionable Creatures
by Pauline D. Baynes
from Eerdmans
for 5th-9th grade
Rip Van Winkle
Calla Editions
by Washington Irving
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
Rip Van Winkle
Books of Wonder
by Washington Irving (illustrated by N.C. Wyeth)
from William Morrow & Company
for 5th-9th grade
Rip Van Winkle & The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
Macmillan Classics
by Washington Irving, illustrated by David Levine
from Macmillan
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Rip Van Winkle and Other Stories
Puffin Classics
by Washington Irving
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$7.99
Romulus
Makers of History series
by Jacob Abbott
from Yesterday's Classics
History for 8th-12th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.95 $7.50 (1 in stock)
Saint George
by Katherine Miller, illustrated by Wallace Tripp
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
Scottish Fairy Tales
from Bracken Books
for 3rd-Adult
Shadow of the Bear
by Regina Doman
4th edition from Chesterton Press
Modern Fairy Tale for
Shakespeare Stories
by Leon Garfield
X from Sandpiper Books
for 7th-12th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
Shakespeare Stories
by Leon Garfield
from Houghton Mifflin
for 7th-12th grade
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
Stories from the Arabian Nights
Junior Deluxe Editions
by Retold by A.E. Housman, illustrated by Girard Goodenow
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 4th-9th grade
Stories from the Arabian Nights
by Laurence Housman, illustrated by Edmund Dulac
from George H. Doran Company
for 9th-Adult
Stories from the Arabian Nights
by Naomi Lewis (reteller), illustrated by Anton Pieck
from Methuen
for 4th-9th grade
Stories from the Arabian Nights
Junior Deluxe Editions
by A.E. Housman (reteller), illustrated by Edmund Dulac
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 4th-9th grade
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)
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
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