Title:  Magical Tales From Many Lands
Author:  (retold by) Margaret Mayo
Illustrator:  Jane Ray
Publisher:  Dutton Children’s Books
ISBN:  0-525-45017-3

Summary:  An anthology of stories about magic from around the world.
Butterfly’s notes:  These tales feature strong heroes and heroines who stand by their morals and learn from their mistakes.  I absolutely loved this anthology as a child; it is one of my personal favorites.  There is something about Jane Ray’s illustrations that really brings the stories to life.

Categories:  ages 7-9, ages 10-12, fairy tales, mythology and legends, fantasy, anthologies, picture books

Title:  Babushka Baba Yaga
Author/ Illustrator:  Patricia Polacco
Publisher:  Philomel Books
ISBN:  0-399-22531-5

Summary:  The forest creature Baba Yaga is considered to be an evil witch,  but she feels misunderstood.  Wishing for a grandchild of her own, she disguises herself as a babushka (grandmother) and offers her help to Natasha, a single mother whose son has no babushka.  But, when Baba Yaga’s  foster grandson is scared by tales of the forest witch, she flees lest he discover the truth about her.  Only when danger threatens her foster family does the Baba Yaga reveal her true identity.
Butterfly’s notes:  There are many tales about the Russian witch, Baba Yaga Bony Legs.  This story shows a much softer side of the Baba Yaga that is compeltely loveable.  You can’t help but sympathize with her as a social outcast and rooting for her in her disguise as a babushka.  I love the drawings too!

For a more traditional Baba Yaga story, try reading Baba Yaga Bony Legs in Magical Tales From Many Lands.

Categories:  ages 7-9, ages 10-12, fairy tales, fantasy, mythology and legends, picture books, re-thinking fairy tales, profound messages

Title:  Good As Gold:  Stories of values from around the world
Author:  Barbara Baumgartner
Illustrator:  Amanda Hall
Publisher:  Family Learning
ISBN:  0-7894-3482-2

Summary:  An anthology of stories about our fascination with gold.
Butterfly’s notes:  Some of these tales are well-known, but others are not.  The author has given each story a condensed, tidy moral at the end.  The book attempts to show that there is value in more than just gold.

Categories:  ages 4-6, ages 7-10, ages 10-12, fairy tales, mythology and legends, profound messages, animal stories, anthologies, picture books

Title:  The Story Of The Tooth Fairy
Author:  Tom Paxton
Illustrator:  Robert Sauber
Publisher:  Morrow Junior Books
ISBN:  0-688-12987-0 (trade)
0-688-12988-9 (library)

Summary:  The young fairy Glynnis is accidentally discovered by a mortal girl, Emily.  Together they form a bond that will make Glynnis one of the most famous fairies of all time.
Butterfly’s notes:  It is sad that the Tooth Fairy doesn’t have a previously established story of her own.  Luckily, this book provides one!  Every child that loses a tooth should hear this story.

Categories:  ages 4-6, ages 7-9, ages 10-12, fairy tales, mythology and legends, fantasy, picture books, geared at girls

Title:  Father And Daughter Tales
Author:  (Retold by) Josephine Evetts-Secker
Illustrator:  Helen Cann
Publisher:  Abbeville Kids
ISBN:  0-7892-0392-8

Summary:  Stories about young women and their relationships to fathers and husbands.
Butterfly’s notes:  Not all father-daughter relationships are perfect.  This book tells about good relationships and more difficult ones.  The fathers in the tales work to love, learn from, and bless their daughters.

Categories:  ages 7-9, ages 10-12, fairy tales, mythology and legends, anthologies, picture books, fantasy, geared at girls

Title:  The Twelve Dancing Princesses
Author:  (As told by) Marianna Mayer
Illustrator:  K. Y. Craft
Publisher:  Morrow Junior Books
ISBN:  0-688-08051-0
0-688-02026-7 (lib. bdg.)

Summary:  A strange dream prompts the farmer Peter to go to the castle where he hopes to help the king break a spell ensnaring his twelve daughters.
Butterfly’s notes:  I like this story because while Peter does set out to rescue the princess Elise, in the end she is the one who breaks the spell. 
The magical world in this book is beautiful and enchating, but it makes the princesses haughty and cold.  Throughout the story, Elise learns what it means to really love someone and why it is better than the false love she enjoys within the enchantment.  In a way, this is a story about growing up, because only by leaving the world of fantasy that they have discovered can the princesses begin to truly live.

Categories:  ages 7-9, ages 10-12, fairy tales, picture books, geared at girls, fantasy

Title:  Child of Faerie, Child of Earth
Author:  Jane Yolen
Illustrator:  Jane Dyer
Publisher:  Little, Brown And Company
ISBN:  0-316-96897-8

Summary:  A faerie boy befriends a human girl.  They strengthen their friendship in an exploration and celebration of their two worlds.
Butterfly’s notes:  This poetic book is perfect fo anyone with an interest in the faerie world.  While they can’t always be together, the boy and girl maintain a strong bond.
This is a good book for Halloween or harvest-time.  In traditional tales, the faerie world is a beautiful but harmful place for human visitors.  In modern stories and cartoons, faeries are all glitz and girly-styles.  This book presents a mixture of the two, showing us a faerie hall that is enchanting and delightful, but not meant for humans.  For Jane Yolen, humans can safely visit the faerie world, but they cannot stay.  Perhaps the faerie world of dancing and play is a metaphor for childhood; the little girl in the story can enjoy it for a time, but must in the end return to her farming lifestyle.

Categories:  ages 7-9, ages 10-12, fairy tales, fantasy, picture books