A fairy tale is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic, enchantments, and mythical or fanciful beings. In most cultures, there is no clear line separating myth from folk or fairy tale; all these together form the literature of preliterate societies. Fairy tales may be distinguished from other folk narratives such as legends and explicit moral tales, including beast fables. Prevalent elements include dwarfs, dragons, elves, fairies, giants, gnomes, goblins, griffins, mermaids, talking animals, trolls, unicorns, monsters, witches, wizards, magic, and enchantments.
In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through unnatural means. The idea of shape-shifting is in the oldest forms of totemism and shamanism, as well as the oldest existent literature and epic poems such as the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Iliad. The concept remains a common literary device in modern fantasy, children's literature and popular culture.
"The Twelve Dancing Princesses" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in Grimm's Fairy Tales in 1815. It is of Aarne-Thompson type 306.
"The Six Swans" is a German fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm in Grimm's Fairy Tales in 1812. It is of Aarne–Thompson type 451, commonly found throughout Europe. Other tales of this type include The Seven Ravens, The Twelve Wild Ducks, Udea and her Seven Brothers, The Wild Swans, and The Twelve Brothers. Andrew Lang included a variant of the tale in The Yellow Fairy Book.
The Langs' Fairy Books are a series of 25 collections of true and fictional stories for children published between 1889 and 1913 by Andrew Lang and his wife, Leonora Blanche Alleyne. The best known books of the series are the 12 collections of fairy tales also known as Andrew Lang's "Coloured" Fairy Books or Andrew Lang's Fairy Books of Many Colors. In all, the volumes feature 798 stories, besides the 153 poems in The Blue Poetry Book.
The Death of Koschei the Deathless or Marya Morevna is a Russian fairy tale collected by Alexander Afanasyev in Narodnye russkie skazki and included by Andrew Lang in The Red Fairy Book. The character Koschei is an evil immortal man who menaces young women with his magic.
"The Nine Peahens and the Golden Apples" is a work of Serbian epic poetry. It is classified as Aarne-Thompson type 400*, "The Swan Maiden", and ATU 400, "The Quest for the Lost Wife".
Ruth Manning-Sanders was an English poet and author born in Wales, known for a series of children's books for which she collected and related fairy tales worldwide. She published over 90 books in her lifetime
King Kojata or The Unlooked for Prince or Prince Unexpected is a Slavonic fairy tale, of Polish origin. Louis Léger remarked that its source was "one of the most important collections of Polish literature".
Peter and the Piskies: Cornish Folk and Fairy Tales is a 1958 anthology of 34 fairy tales from Cornwall that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders and illustrated by Raymond Briggs. It was the first in a long series of such anthologies by Manning-Sanders.
A Book of Giants is a 1963 anthology of 13 fairy tales from Europe that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. It is one in a long series of such anthologies by Manning-Sanders. It was the first anthology to receive the familiar "A Book of..." title that Manning-Sanders would become notable for.
The Knights of the Fish is a Spanish fairy tale collected by Fernán Caballero in Cuentos. Oraciones y Adivinas. Andrew Lang included it in The Brown Fairy Book. A translation was published in Golden Rod Fairy Book. Another version of the tale appears in A Book of Enchantments and Curses by Ruth Manning-Sanders.
The Jezinkas is a Bohemian fairy tale collected by A. H. Wratislaw in his Sixty Folk-Tales from Exclusively Slavonic Sources, number 5. Parker Filmore included it, as Grandfather's Eyes, in Czechoslovak Fairy Tales. Ruth Manning-Sanders included, as Johnny and the Witch-Maidens in both A Book of Witches and A Choice of Magic.
The Red King and the Witch: Gypsy Folk and Fairy Tales is a 1964 anthology of 25 tales that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. The book features illustrations by Hungarian-British artist Victor Ambrus.
The Glass Man and the Golden Bird: Hungarian Folk and Fairy Tales is a 1968 anthology of 21 tales from Hungary that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. It is one in a long series of such anthologies by Manning-Sanders.
Folk and Fairy Tales is a 1978 anthology of 25 fairy tales from around the world that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. In fact, the book is mostly a collection of tales published in previous Manning-Sanders anthologies. Stories are pulled from A Book of Dragons, A Book of Mermaids, A Book of Witches, A Book of Dwarfs, A Book of Devils and Demons, A Book of Kings and Queens, A Book of Magic Animals, A Book of Giants, A Book of Ogres and Trolls, A Book of Wizards, A Book of Enchantments and Curses and A Book of Monsters.
Tales of Magic and Mystery is a 1985 anthology of 11 fairy tales from around the world that have been collected and retold by Ruth Manning-Sanders. It is one in a long series of such anthologies by Manning-Sanders.
