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The Fairy Ring: Favorite Fairy Tales of Many Countries
Here are the favorite fairy tales of many countries, told for modern children as they have been told for centuries to boys and girls in every part of the world. There are English, Spanish, French, an German Stories. There are tales from the Norse and Gaelic mythology, from the Russian and the East Indian. Kate Douglas Wiggin in her introduction says, "Old nurses and village crones have repeated them by the fireside and in the chimney corner; shepherds and cowboys have recounted them by the brookside, until the children of the world have all learned them by heart, bequeathing them, generation after generation, as a priceless legacy to their own children."
512 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1906
About the author
Kate Douglas Wiggin
614 books166 followersKate Douglas Smith Wiggin
Kate Douglas Wiggin, nee Smith (1856-1923) was an American children's author and educator. She was born in Philadelphia, and was of Welsh descent. She started the first free kindergarten in San Francisco in 1878 (the "Silver Street Free Kindergarten"). With her sister in the 1880s she also established a training school for kindergarten teachers. Her best known books are The Story of Pasty (1883), The Birds' Christmas Carol (1886), Polly Oliver's Problem (1893), A Cathedral Courtship (1893), The Village Watchtoer (1896), Marm Lisa (1897) and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1903).
Kate Douglas Wiggin, nee Smith (1856-1923) was an American children's author and educator. She was born in Philadelphia, and was of Welsh descent. She started the first free kindergarten in San Francisco in 1878 (the "Silver Street Free Kindergarten"). With her sister in the 1880s she also established a training school for kindergarten teachers. Her best known books are The Story of Pasty (1883), The Birds' Christmas Carol (1886), Polly Oliver's Problem (1893), A Cathedral Courtship (1893), The Village Watchtoer (1896), Marm Lisa (1897) and Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1903).
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 5, 2015
A collection of sixty-three classic fairy tales, gathered together by location of origin and all based upon what I have always considered to be the three R's of such stories - repetition, randomness and reward.
In the foreword, editor Kate Douglas Wiggins explains that it was the intention to omit many of more familiar tales 'to give you in their stead stories less well known and hackneyed.' This decision alone ensures that this is collection, first published in 1906, remains a valuable one.
The twelve Scandinavian tales feature golden apples, bears, crones, trolls, transformations and a boisterous 'skrattel' (goblins).
Of the four English tales, who of them - 'Tom Thumb' and 'the History of Jack the Giant Killer' - I remember well from my youth and have an Arthurian setting.
There are thirteen French fairy tales, some of which are veritable epics of the form at twenty or thirty pages in length. They usually feature wicked step-mothers such as Duchess Grumbly in 'Graciosa and Percinet', who torment poor princesses such as Eliza in the epic 'The Wild Swans', who has to weave eleven coats out of stinging nettles for her enchanted brothers.
Of Spanish fairy stories there are only two, one of which, 'The Story of Coquerico', is an Aesopian tale that explains how the weathercock came to be.
Then on to four Gaelic tales, actually fairly disappointing examples, with nary a leprechaun in sight and simply too much repetition in one or two instances, most notably 'The Long Leather Bag', which is the laziest written of all the stories here.
As you can probably predict, the greatest number of tales come from Germany, courtesy to a large degree of the Brothers Grimm. The majority of the more famous ones are not included, as suggested in the foreword, but you do get 'Rapunzel' (which means 'corn salad' by the way) and 'Rumple-Stilts-Ken'.
Finally we move East, with three stories from Russia, of which 'The Magic Egg' reads like a composite story of a number of tales bolted together,
Then to finish up six stories from India, which all in all I found to be the most satisfying, especially 'The Magic Ring' and 'The Brahman, the Tiger, and the Six Judges'.
When you read a vast and varied collection like this in one go you can clearly notice the same motifs occurring again and again across such tales, and you can't help but wonder which tale influenced which, or whether they truly represent such a fundamental aspect of humanity and storytelling that they grew organically in isolation?
The book is free to read online and is well worth at least a quick dip, if not a full immersion.
In the foreword, editor Kate Douglas Wiggins explains that it was the intention to omit many of more familiar tales 'to give you in their stead stories less well known and hackneyed.' This decision alone ensures that this is collection, first published in 1906, remains a valuable one.
The twelve Scandinavian tales feature golden apples, bears, crones, trolls, transformations and a boisterous 'skrattel' (goblins).
Of the four English tales, who of them - 'Tom Thumb' and 'the History of Jack the Giant Killer' - I remember well from my youth and have an Arthurian setting.
There are thirteen French fairy tales, some of which are veritable epics of the form at twenty or thirty pages in length. They usually feature wicked step-mothers such as Duchess Grumbly in 'Graciosa and Percinet', who torment poor princesses such as Eliza in the epic 'The Wild Swans', who has to weave eleven coats out of stinging nettles for her enchanted brothers.
Of Spanish fairy stories there are only two, one of which, 'The Story of Coquerico', is an Aesopian tale that explains how the weathercock came to be.
Then on to four Gaelic tales, actually fairly disappointing examples, with nary a leprechaun in sight and simply too much repetition in one or two instances, most notably 'The Long Leather Bag', which is the laziest written of all the stories here.
As you can probably predict, the greatest number of tales come from Germany, courtesy to a large degree of the Brothers Grimm. The majority of the more famous ones are not included, as suggested in the foreword, but you do get 'Rapunzel' (which means 'corn salad' by the way) and 'Rumple-Stilts-Ken'.
Finally we move East, with three stories from Russia, of which 'The Magic Egg' reads like a composite story of a number of tales bolted together,
Then to finish up six stories from India, which all in all I found to be the most satisfying, especially 'The Magic Ring' and 'The Brahman, the Tiger, and the Six Judges'.
When you read a vast and varied collection like this in one go you can clearly notice the same motifs occurring again and again across such tales, and you can't help but wonder which tale influenced which, or whether they truly represent such a fundamental aspect of humanity and storytelling that they grew organically in isolation?
The book is free to read online and is well worth at least a quick dip, if not a full immersion.
July 14, 2023
A lot of these stories were duds, and I got sick of people falling in love at first sight, or even when just hearing about a person or seeing a picture. But there were some good stories that I enjoyed. I listened to the LibriVox audiobook. Most of the readers were good, but I would suggest that parents preview these stories before their children listen to them as not all stories were suitable for kids.
July 11, 2018
In Afrikaans gelees as "Oos van die Son" en "Wes van die Maan".
May 4, 2012
This was an enlightening book about the cultural variety of fairies through out the world.
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February 19, 2014Read: The Iron Wolf, The White Cat, East o' the Sun, West o' the Moon, Briar Rose, The Wild Swans, The Ants that Pushed on the Sky
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November 27, 2016It was great to read classic fairy tales to my son -- although at times interest wandered...
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews