Fairy Books

Tables of Contents and Attributions

The Blue Fairy Book (1889)

From the preface to the Blue Fairy Book: “The tales of Perrault are printed from the old English version of the eighteenth century. The stories from the Cabinet des Fées and from Madame d’Aulnoy are translated, or rather adapted, by Miss Minnie Wright, who has also, by M. Henri Carnoy’s kind permission, rendered ‘The Bronze Ring’ from his Traditions Populaires de l’Asie Mineure (Maisonneuve, Paris, 1889). The stories from Grimm are translated by Miss May Sellar; another from the German by Miss Sylvia Hunt; the Norse tales are a version by Mrs. Alfred Hunt; ‘The Terrible Head’ is adapted from Apollodorus, Simonides, and Pindar by the Editor; Miss Violet Hunt condensed ‘Aladdin’; Miss May Kendall did the same for Gulliver’s Travels; ‘The Fairy Paribanou’ is abridged from the old English translation of Galland. Messrs. Chambers have kindly allowed us to reprint ‘The Red Etin’ and ‘The Black Bull of Norroway’ from Mr. Robert Chambers’ Popular Traditions of Scotland. ‘Dick Whittington’ is from the chap book edited by Mr. Gomme and Mr. Wheatley for the Villon Society; ‘Jack the Giant-Killer’ is from a chap book, but a good version of this old favourite is hard to procure.”

[Note that there is also a longer Introduction to the Large-Paper Edition.]

• “The Bronze Ring”
• “Prince Hyacinth and the Dear Little Princess”
• “East of the Sun and West of the Moon”
• “The Yellow Dwarf”
• “Little Red Riding-hood”
• “The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood”
• “Cinderella, or the Little Glass Slipper”
• “Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp”
• “The Tale of a Youth who Set out to Learn what Fear was”
• “Rumpelstiltzkin”
• “Beauty and the Beast”
• “The Master-maid”
• “Why the Sea is Salt”
• “The Master Cat; or, Puss in Boots”
• “Felicia and the Pot of Pinks”
• “The White Cat”
• “The Water-lily. The Gold-spinners”
• “The Terrible Head”
• “The Story of Pretty Goldilocks”
• “The History of Whittington”
• “The Wonderful Sheep”
• “Little Thumb”
• “The Forty Thieves”
• “Hansel and Grettel”
• “Snow-white and Rose-red”
• “The Goose-girl”
• “Toads and Diamonds”
• “Prince Darling”
• “Blue Beard”
• “Trusty John”
• “The Brave Little Tailor”
• “A Voyage to Lilliput”
• “The Princess on the Glass Hill”
• “The Story of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou”
• “The History of Jack the Giant-killer”
• “The Black Bull of Norroway”
• “The Red Etin”

The Red Fairy Book (1890)

From the preface to the Red Fairy Book: “The tales have been translated, or, in the case of those from Madame d’Aulnoy’s long stories, adapted, by Mrs. Hunt from the Norse, by Miss Minnie Wright from Madame d’Aulnoy, by Mrs. Lang and Miss Bruce from other French sources, by Miss May Sellar, Miss Farquharson, and Miss Blackley from the German, while the story of ‘Sigurd’ is condensed by the Editor from Mr. William Morris’s prose version of the ‘Volsunga Saga.’ The Editor has to thank his friend, M. Charles Marelles, for permission to reproduce his versions of the ‘Pied Piper,’ of ‘Drakestail,’ and of ‘Little Golden Hood’ from the French, and M. Henri Carnoy for the same privilege in regard to ‘The Six Sillies’ from La Tradition. Lady Frances Balfour has kindly copied an old version of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ and Messrs. Smith and Elder have permitted the publication of two of Mr. Ralston’s versions from the Russian.”

• “The Twelve Dancing Princesses”
• “The Princess Mayblossom”
• “Soria Moria Castle”
• “The Death of Koschei the Deathless”
• “The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen”
• “The Master Thief”
• “Brother and Sister”
• “Princess Rosette”
• “The Enchanted Pig”
• “The Norka”
• “The Wonderful Birch”
• “Jack and the Beanstalk”
• “The Little Good Mouse”
• “Graciosa and Percinet”
• “The Three Princesses of Whiteland”
• “The Voice of Death”
• “The Six Sillies”
• “Kari Woodengown”
• “Drakestail”
• “The Ratcatcher”
• “The True History of Little Goldenhood”
• “The Golden Branch”
• “The Three Dwarfs”
• “Dapplegrim”
• “The Enchanted Canary”
• “The Twelve Brothers”
• “Rapunzel”
• “The Nettle Spinner”
• “Farmer Weatherbeard”
• “Mother Holle”
• “Minnikin”
• “Bushy Bride”
• “Snowdrop”
• “The Golden Goose”
• “The Seven Foals”
• “The Marvellous Musician”
• “The Story of Sigurd”

The Green Fairy Book (1892)

From the preface to the Green Fairy Book: “Some of the tales here, like The Half-Chick, are for very little children; others for older ones. The longest tales, like Heart of Ice, were not invented when the others were, but were written in French, by clever men and women, such as Madame d’Aulnoy, and the Count de Caylus, about two hundred years ago. There are not many people now, perhaps there are none, who can write really good fairy tales, because they do not believe enough in their own stories, and because they want to be wittier than it has pleased Heaven to make them. So here we give you the last of the old stories, for the present, and hope you will like them, and feel grateful to the Brothers Grimm, who took them down from the telling of old women, and to M. Sébillot and M. Charles Marelles, who have lent us some tales from their own French people, and to Mr. Ford, who drew the pictures, and to the ladies, Miss Blackley, Miss Alma Alleyne, Miss Eleanor Sellar, Miss May Sellar, Miss Wright, and Mrs. Lang, who translated many of the tales out of French, German, and other languages” (xi).

• “The Blue Bird”
• “The Half-Chick”
• “The Story of Caliph Stork”
• “The Enchanted Watch”
• “Rosanella”
• “Sylvain and Jocosa”
• “Fairy Gifts”
• “Prince Narcissus and the Princess Potentilla”
• “Prince Featherhead and the Princess Celandine”
• “The Three Little Pigs”
• “Heart of Ice”
• “The Enchanted Ring”
• “The Snuff-box”
• “The Golden Blackbird”
• “The Little Soldier”
• “The Magic Swan”
• “The Dirty Shepherdess”
• “The Enchanted Snake”
• “The Biter Bit”
• “King Kojata”
• “Prince Fickle and Fair Helena”
• “Puddocky”
• “The Story of Hok Lee and the Dwarfs”
• “The Story of the Three Bears”
• “Prince Vivien and the Princess Placida”
• “Little One-eye, Little Two-eyes, and Little Three-eyes”
• “Jorinde and Joringel”
• “Allerleirauh; or, the Many-furred Creature”
• “The Twelve Huntsmen”
• “Spindle, Shuttle, and Needle”
• “The Crystal Coffin”
• “The Three Snake-leaves”
• “The Riddle”
• “Jack my Hedgehog”
• “The Golden Lads”
• “The White Snake”
• “The Story of a Clever Tailor”
• “The Golden Mermaid”
• “The War of the Wolf and the Fox”
• “The Story of the Fisherman and his Wife”
• “The Three Musicians”
• “The Three Dogs”

The Yellow Fairy Book (1894)

From the preface to the Yellow Fairy Book: “There are Russian, German, French, Icelandic, Red Indian, and other stories here. They were translated by Miss Cheape, Miss Alma, and Miss Thyra Alleyne, Miss Sellar, Mr. Craigie (he did the Icelandic tales), Miss Blackley, Mrs. Dent, and Mrs. Lang, but the Red Indian stories are copied from English versions published by the Smithsonian Bureau of Ethnology, in America. Mr. Ford did the pictures, and it is hoped that children will find the book not less pleasing than those which have already been submitted to their consideration” (xi).

• “The Cat and the Mouse in Partnership”
• “The Six Swans”
• “The Dragon of the North”
• “Story of the Emperor’s New Clothes”
• “The Golden Crab”
• “The Iron Stove”
• “The Dragon and his Grandmother”
• “The Donkey Cabbage”
• “The Little Green Frog”
• “The Seven-headed Serpent”
• “The Grateful Beasts”
• “The Giants and the Herd-boy”
• “The Invisible Prince”
• “The Crow”
• “How Six Men travelled through the Wide World”
• “The Wizard King”
• “The Nixy”
• “The Glass Mountain”
• “Alphege, or the Green Monkey”
• “Fairer-than-a-Fairy”
• “The Three Brothers”
• “The Boy and the Wolves, or the Broken Promise”
• “The Glass Axe”
• “The Dead Wife”
• “In the Land of Souls”
• “The White Duck”
• “The Witch and her Servants”
• “The Magic Ring”
• “The Flower Queen’s Daughter”
• “The Flying Ship”
• “The Snow-daughter and the Fire-son”
• “The Story of King Frost”
• “The Death of the Sun-hero”
• “The Witch”
• “The Hazel-nut Child”
• “The Story of Big Klaus and Little Klaus”
• “Prince Ring”
• “The Swineherd”
• “How to tell a True Princess”
• “The Blue Mountains”
• “The Tinder-box”
• “The Witch in the Stone Boat”
• “Thumbelina”
• “The Nightingale”
• “Hermod and Hadvor”
• “The Steadfast Tin-soldier”
• “Blockhead Hans”
• “A Story about a Darning-needle”

The Pink Fairy Book (1897)

From the preface to the Pink Fairy Book: “A child who has read the Blue and Red and Yellow Fairy Books will find some old friends with new faces in the Pink Fairy Book, if he examines and compares. But the Japanese tales will probably be new to the young student; the Tanuki is a creature whose acquaintance he may not have made before. . . .The Danish story of ‘The Princess in the Chest’ need not be read to a very nervous child, as it rather borders on a ghost story. . . . The other Danish and Swedish stories not are alarming. They are translated by Mr. W. A. Craigie. Those from the Sicilian (through the German) are translated, like the African tales (through the French) and the Catalan tales, and the Japanese stories (the latter through the German), and an old French story, by Mrs. Lang. Miss Alma Alleyne did the stories from Andersen, out of the German. Mr. Ford, as usual, has drawn the monsters and mermaids, the princes and giants, and the beautiful princesses, who, the Editor thinks, are, if possible, prettier than ever” (vii–viii).

• “The Cat’s Elopement”
• “How the Dragon was Tricked”
• “The Goblin and the Grocer”
• “The House in the Wood”
• “Uraschimataro and the Turtle”
• “The Slaying of the Tanuki”
• “The Flying Trunk”
• “The Snow Man”
• “The Shirt-Collar”
• “The Princess in the Chest”
• “The Three Brothers”
• “The Snow-queen”
• “The Fir-Tree”
• “Hans, the Mermaid’s Son”
• “Peter Bull”
• “The Bird ‘Grip’”
• “Snowflake”
• “I know what I have learned”
• “The Cunning Shoemaker”
• “The King who would have a Beautiful Wife”
• “Catherine and her Destiny”
• “How the Hermit helped to win the King’s Daughter”
• “The Water of Life”
• “The Wounded Lion”
• “The Man without a Heart”
• “The Two Brothers”
• “Master and Pupil”
• “The Golden Lion”
• “The Sprig of Rosemary”
• “The White Dove”
• “The Troll’s Daughter”
• “Esben and the Witch”
• “Princess Minon-Minette”
• “Maiden Bright-eye”
• “The Merry Wives”
• “King Lindorm”
• “The Jackal, the Dove, and the Panther”
• “The Little Hare”
• “The Sparrow with the Slit Tongue”
• “The Story of Ciccu”
• “Don Giovanni de la Fortuna”

The Grey Fairy Book (1900)

From the preface to the Grey Fairy Book: “The tales in the Grey Fairy Book are derived from many countries—Lithuania, various parts of Africa, Germany, France, Greece, and other regions of the world. They have been translated and adapted by Mrs. Dent, Mrs. Lang, Miss Eleanor Sellar, Miss Blackley, and Miss Lang. ‘The Three Sons of Hali’ is from the last century ‘Cabinet des Fées,’ a very large collection.”

• “Donkey Skin”
• “The Goblin Pony”
• “An Impossible Enchantment”
• “The Story of Dschemil and Dschemila”
• “Janni and the Draken”
• “The Partnership of the Thief and the Liar”
• “Fortunatus and his Purse”
• “The Goat-faced Girl”
• “What came of picking Flowers”
• “The Story of Bensurdatu”
• “The Magician’s Horse”
• “The Little Gray Man”
• “Herr Lazarus and the Draken”
• “The Story of the Queen of the Flowery Isles”
• “Udea and her Seven Brothers”
• “The White Wolf”
• “Mohammed with the Magic Finger”
• “Bobino”
• “The Dog and the Sparrow”
• “The Story of the Three Sons of Hali”
• “The Story of the Fair Circassians”
• “The Jackal and the Spring”
• “The Bear”
• “The Sunchild”
• “The Daughter of Buk Ettemsuch”
• “Laughing Eye and Weeping Eye, or the Limping Fox”
• “The Unlooked-for Prince”
• “The Simpleton”
• “The Street Musicians”
• “The Twin Brothers”
• “Cannetella”
• “The Ogre”
• “A Fairy’s Blunder”
• “Long, Broad, and Quickeye”
• “Prunella”

The Violet Fairy Book (1901)

From the preface to the Violet Fairy Book: “Of the stories in this book, Miss Blackley translated ‘Dwarf Long Nose,’ ‘The Wonderful Beggars,’ ‘The Lute Player,’ ‘Two in a Sack,’ and ‘The Fish that swam in the Air.’ Mr. W. A. Craigie translated from the Scandinavian, ‘Jesper who herded the Hares.’ Mrs. Lang did the rest. Some of the most interesting are from the Roumanian, and three were previously published in the late Dr. Steere’s ‘Swahili Tales.’ By the permission of his representatives these three African stories have here been abridged and simplified for children” (viii)

• “A Tale of the Tontlawald”
• “The finest Liar in the World”
• “The Story of three Wonderful Beggars”
• “Schippeitaro”
• “The Three Princes and their Beasts”
• “The Goat’s Ears of the Emperor of Trojan”
• “The Nine Pea-hens and the Golden Apples”
• “The Lute Player”
• “The Grateful Prince”
• “The Child who came from an Egg”
• “Stan Bolovan”
• “The Two Frogs”
• “The Story of a Gazelle”
• “How a Fish swam in the Air and a Hare in the Water”
• “Two in a Sack”
• “The Envious Neighbour”
• “The Fairy of the Dawn”
• “The Enchanted Knife”
• “Jesper who herded the Hares”
• “The Underground Workers”
• “The History of Dwarf Long Nose”
• “The Nunda, Eater of People”
• “The Story of Hassebu”
• “The Maiden with the Wooden Helmet”
• “The Monkey and the Jelly-fish”
• “The Headless Dwarfs”
• “The young Man who would have his Eyes opened”
• “The Boys with the Golden Stars”
• “The Frog”
• “The Princess who was hidden Underground”
• “The Girl who pretended to be a Boy”
• “The Story of Halfman”
• “The Prince who wanted to see the World”
• “Virgilius the Sorcerer”
• “Mogarzea and his Son”

The Crimson Fairy Book (1903)

From the preface to the Crimson Fairy Book: “Many tales in this book are translated, or adapted, from those told by mothers and nurses in Hungary; others are familiar to Russian nurseries; the Servians are responsible for some; a rather peculiarly fanciful set of stories are adapted from the Roumanians; others are from the Baltic shores; others from sunny Sicily; a few are from Finland, and Iceland, and Japan, and Tunis, and Portugal. No doubt many children will like to look out these places on the map, and study their mountains, rivers, soil, products, and fiscal policies, in the geography books. The peoples who tell the stories differ in colour, language, religion, and almost everything else; but they all love a nursery tale. The stories have mainly been adapted or translated by Mrs. Lang, a few by Miss Lang and Miss Blackley” (vi).

The Brown Fairy Book (1904)

From the preface to the Brown Fairy Book: “The tale of ‘What the Rose did to the Cypress,’ is translated out of a Persian manuscript by Mrs. Beveridge. ‘Pivi and Kabo’ is translated by the Editor from a French version; ‘Asmund and Signy’ by Miss Blackley; the Indian stories by Major Campbell, and all the rest are told by Mrs. Lang, who does not give them exactly as they are told by all sorts of outlandish natives, but makes them up in the hope white people will like them, skipping the pieces which they will not like. That is how this Fairy Book was made up for your entertainment” (viii).  

As can be seen, some of the language and expressions in this preface are offensive, and I have chosen not to quote all of Lang’s comments on the stories’ origins. Lang does not always note exact sources, ascribing “The Ball-Carrier and the Bad One” to North America, “The Bunyip” to Australia (see Teverson, The Fairy Tale World p. 8 for more information on its collection), ‘The Sacred Milk of Koumongoé” to Africa, and “Pivi and Kabo” to New Caledonia. Please forgive the fact that my present goal is to make an easily searchable list of the Fairy Book Table of Contents rather than to link fairy tales with their sources. As can be seen from the bibliography, Lang’s fairy books have been written on at length, and interested researchers should find sources they can examine more fully to answer these questions.

• “What the Rose did to the Cypress”
• “Ball-Carrier and the Bad One”
• “How Ball-Carrier finished his Task”
• “The Bunyip”
• “Father Grumbler”
• “The Story of the Yara”
• “The Cunning Hare”
• “The Turtle and his Bride”
• “How Geirald the Coward was Punished”
• “Hábogi”
• “How the Little Brother set Free his Big Brothers”
• “The Sacred Milk of Koumongoé”
• “The Wicked Wolverine”
• “The Husband of the Rat’s Daughter”
• “The Mermaid and the Boy”
• “Pivi and Kabo”
• “The Elf Maiden”
• “How Some Wild Animals became Tame Ones”
• “Fortune and the Wood-Cutter”
• “The Enchanted Head”
• “The Sister of the Sun”
• “The Prince and the Three Fates”
• “The Fox and the Lapp”
• “Kisa the Cat”
• “The Lion and the Cat”
• “Which was the Foolishest?”
• “Asmund and Signy”
• “Rübezahl”
• “Story of the King who would be Stronger than Fate”
• “Story of Wali Dâd the Simple-hearted”
• “Tale of a Tortoise and of a Mischievous Monkey”
• “The Knights of the Fish”

The Orange Fairy Book (1906)

From the preface to the Orange Fairy Book: “In this volume there are stories from the natives of Rhodesia, collected by Mr. Fairbridge, who speaks the native language, and one is brought by Mr. Cripps from another part of Africa, Uganda. Three tales from the Punjaub were collected and translated by Major Campbell. Various savage tales, which needed a good deal of editing, are derived from the learned pages of the ‘Journal of the Anthropological Institute.’ With these exceptions, and ‘The Magic Book,’ translated by Mrs. Pedersen, from ‘Eventyr fra Jylland,’ by Mr. Ewald Tang Kristensen (Stories from Jutland), all the tales have been done, from various sources, by Mrs. Lang, who has modified, where it seemed desirable, all the narratives” (vii–viii).

• “The Story of the Hero Makóma”
• “The Magic Mirror”
• “Story of the King who Would See Paradise”
• “How Isuro the Rabbit Tricked Gudu”
• “Ian, the Soldier’s Son”
• “The Fox and the Wolf”
• “How Ian Direach Got the Blue Falcon”
• “The Ugly Duckling”
• “The Two Caskets”
• “The Goldsmith’s Fortune”
• “The Enchanted Wreath”
• “The Foolish Weaver”
• “The Clever Cat”
• “The Story of Manus”
• “Pinkel the Thief”
• “The Adventures of a Jackal”
• “The Adventures of the Jackal’s Eldest Son”
• “The Adventures of the Younger Son of the Jackal”
• “The Three Treasures of the Giants”
• “The Rover of the Plain”
• “The White Doe”
• “The Girl-Fish”
• “The Owl and the Eagle”
• “The Frog and the Lion Fairy”
• “The Adventures of Covan the Brown-haired”
• “The Princess Bella-Flor”
• “The Bird of Truth”
• “The Mink and the Wolf”
• “Adventures of an Indian Brave”
• “How the Stalos Were Tricked”
• “Andras Baive”
• “The White Slipper”
• “The Magic Book”

The Olive Fairy Book (1907)

From the preface to the Olive Fairy Book: “In this volume we open, thanks to Dr. Ignaz Künos, with a story from the Turks. ‘Little King Loc’ is an original invention by M. Anatole France, which he very kindly permitted Mrs. Lang to adapt from L’Abeille. Major Campbell, as previously, tells tales which he collected among the natives of India. But the sources are usually named at the end of each story, and when they are not named children will not miss them. Mrs. Lang, except in cases mentioned, has translated and adapted to the conditions of young readers the bulk of the collection, and Mrs. Skovgaard-Pedersen has done ‘The Green Knight’ from the Danish. I must especially thank Monsieur Macler for permitting us to use some of his Contes Armeniens” (viii–ix).

• “Madschun”
• “The Blue Parrot”
• “Geirlaug the King’s Daughter”
• “The Story of Little King Loc”
• “A Long-bow Story”
• “Jackal or Tiger?”
• “The Comb and the Collar”
• “The Thanksgiving of the Wazir”
• “Samba the Coward”
• “Kupti and Imani”
• “The Strange Adventures of Little Maia”
• “Diamond cut Diamond”
• “The Green Knight”
• “The Five Wise Words of the Guru”
• “The Golden-headed Fish”
• “Dorani”
• “The Satin Surgeon”
• “The Billy Goat and the King”
• “The Story of Zoulvisia”
• “Grasp all, Lose all”
• “The Fate of the Turtle”
• “The Snake Prince”
• “The Prince and Princess in the Forest”
• “The Clever Weaver”
• “The Boy who found Fear at last”
• “He Wins who Waits”
• “The Steel Cane”
• “The Punishment of the Fairy Gangana”
• “The Silent Princess”

The Lilac Fairy Book (1910)

From the preface to the Lilac Fairy Book: “The fairy books have been almost wholly the work of Mrs. Lang, who has translated and adapted them from the French, German, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Catalan, and other languages. . . . Nobody really wrote most of the stories. All the stories were translated or adapted by Mrs. Lang, except ‘The Jogi’s Punishment’ and ‘Moti,’ done by Major Campbell out of the Pushtoo language; ‘How Brave Walter hunted Wolves,’ which with ‘Little Lasse’ and ‘The Raspberry Worm,’ was done from Topelius by Miss Harding; and ‘The Sea King’s Gift,’ by Miss Christie, from the same author” (vi–vii, ix).

• “The Shifty Lad”
• “The False Prince and the True”
• “The Jogi’s Punishment”
• “The Heart of a Monkey”
• “The Fairy Nurse”
• “A Lost Paradise”
• “How Brave Walter Hunted Wolves”
• “The King of the Waterfalls”
• “A French Puck”
• “The Three Crowns”
• “The Story of a Very Bad Boy”
• “The Brown Bear of Norway”
• “Little Lasse”
• “Moti”
• “The Enchanted Deer”
• “A Fish Story”
• “The Wonderful Tune”
• “The Rich Brother and the Poor Brother”
• “The One-Handed Girl”
• “The Bones of Djulung”
• “The Sea King’s Gift”
• “The Raspberry Worm”
• “The Stones of Plouhinec”
• “The Castle of Kerglas”
• “The Battle of the Birds”
• “The Lady of the Fountain”
• “The Four Gifts”
• “The Groac’h of the Isle of Lok”
• “The Escape of the Mouse”
• “The Believing Husbands”
• “The Hoodie-Crow”
• “The Brownie of the Lake”
• “The Winning of Olwen”

• Return to Children’s Books, Fairy Tales, and Fantasies.
• Return to Books.
• See Leonora Blanche Lang (Alleyne) or Leonara Blanche Lang’s Books for Children.

This page was last modified on 12 Mar. 2026.