It is almost impossible to envision what childhood would be like without the enchanting world of fairyland. Princess Rosanella, The Three Bears, giants and dwarfs, monsters and magicians, fairies and ogres — these are the companions who thrill young boys and girls of all lands and all times, as Andrew Lang's phenomenally successful collections of stories have proved. From the day that they were first printed, the Lang fairy tale books of many colors have entertained thousands of boys and girls, as they have also brought pleasure to the many parents who have read these unforgettable classics to their children. In The Green Fairy Book, the third in the series, Lang has assembled stories from Spanish and Chinese traditions, a few of the most entertaining creations penned by the Comte de Caylus, others by Sebillot, Fenelon, Kletke, and Mme. d'Aulnoy, and, of course, some of the best-loved tales from the Brothers Grimm. Here in one attractive paperbound volume with enlarged print are "The Blue Bird," "Sylvain and Jocosa," "Narcissus and the Princess Potentilla," "The Three Little Pigs," "The Half-Chick," and many other favorites that have become an indispensable part of our cultural heritage. All in all, this collection contains forty-two stories, all narrated in the clear, lively prose for which Lang was famous. Not only are Lang's translations generally conceded to be the best English versions of standard stories, his collections are the richest and widest in range. His position as one of England's foremost folklorists as well as his first-rate literary abilities make his collections unmatchable in the English language. Reprint of the 1893 edition. About the Editor: Andrew Gabriel Lang (1844-1912) was a prolific Scots man of letters, a poet, novelist, literary critic and contributor to anthropology. He now is best known as the collector of folk and fairy tales. He was educated at the Edinburgh Academy, St Andrews University and at Balliol College, Oxford. As a journalist, poet, critic and historian, he soon made a reputation as one of the ablest and most versatile writers of the day. Lang was one of the founders of the study of "Psychical Research," and his other writings on anthropology include The Book of Dreams and Ghosts (1897), Magic and Religion (1901) and The Secret of the Totem (1905). He was a Homeric scholar of conservative views. Other works include Homer and the Epic (1893); a prose translation of The Homeric Hymns (1899), with literary and mythological essays in which he draws parallels between Greek myths and other mythologies; and Homer and his Age (1906). He also wrote Ballades in Blue China (1880) and Rhymes la Mode (1884). |