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Originally published in 1901, The Violet Fairy Book is a compilation of international fables from various locales including Japan, Romania, Portugal, Lithuania, Serbia and Africa. Andrew Lang delivers a comprehensive collection of some of the most beloved tales each region has to offer. The Violet Fairy Book consists of 35 wonderous children's tales. They include magical forests, chests of gold, and a roaring dragon. This edition has popular stories such as "The Goat's Ears of the Emperor Trojan," "The Nine Pea-hens and the Golden Apples," "The Princess Who Was Hidden Underground" and "Virgilius the Sorcerer." Together, they deliver a powerful narrative of engaging and entertaining tales. The Violet Fairy Book is a follow-up to The Grey Fairy Book (1900) and The Pink Fairy Book (1897). It's an unforgettable collection that features some of the most celebrated children's stories of all time. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of The Violet Fairy Book is both modern and readable.
About the author
Andrew Lang (1844 - 1912) was a Scottish poet, novelist, literary critic and contributor to the field of anthropology. He is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. The Andrew Lang lectures at the University of St Andrews are named after him. Lang is now chiefly known for his publications on folklore, mythology and religion. The interest in folklore was from early life; he read John Ferguson McLennan before coming to Oxford, and then was influenced by E. B. Tylor. The earliest of his publications is Custom and Myth (1884). In Myth, Ritual and Religion (1887) he explained the "irrational" elements of mythology as survivals from more primitive forms. Lang's Making of Religion was heavily influenced by the 18th century idea of the "noble savage": in it, he maintained the existence of high spiritual ideas among so-called "savage" races, drawing parallels with the contemporary interest in occult phenomena in England. His Blue Fairy Book (1889) was a beautifully produced and illustrated edition of fairy tales that has become a classic. This was followed by many other collections of fairy tales, collectively known as Andrew Lang's Fairy Books. In the preface of the Lilac Fairy Book he credits his wife with translating and transcribing most of the stories in the collections. Lang examined the origins of totemism in Social Origins (1903).
