Classic Fairy

Often considered the highest achievement in Korean fiction, The Nine Cloud Dream poses the question: Will the life we dream of truly make us happy? Written in 17th-century Korea, this classic novel's wondrous story begins when a young monk living on a sacred Lotus Peak in China succumbs to the temptation of eight fairy maidens. For doubting his master's Buddhist teachings, the monk is forced to endure a strange punishment: reincarnation as the most ideal of men.

Far out at sea, where the water is the bluest of blue, lived a Little Mermaid with her five sisters in an enchanting underwater city surrounded by beautiful flowers and exotic fish of all kinds. Fascinated by stories of the world beyond where the animals and humans dwell, they eagerly awaited their turn to the surface. So, as decree allowed, the Little Mermaid was permitted to rise out of the sea to sit on the rocks in the moonlight on her 16th birthday. In this strange new world, she saves a charming prince from certain death and falls in love.

Here is a collection of the Oscar Wilde's famous fairy tales, read by a cast of leading British actors. Additional narrators include Geoffrey Palmer O.B.E., Sir Donald Sinden, and Elaine Stritch. Music: 'Reverie De Sebastian' by Steve Davies.

Uniting universal themes with a wonderfully personal vision of the world, Hans Christian Andersen found magic in the landscape of childhood. His talking animals and living toys shine a sparkling light on the strange wisdom of innocence and the deceptive nature of adulthood. These stories have now been adapted into countless classic films (including The Little Mermaid, The Red Shoes, and Frozen - which was based on “The Snow Queen”) and have become part of our everyday speech, such as when we talk about “ugly ducklings” and “the emperor’s new clothes.”

The islands of Britain and Ireland hold a rich heritage of plant folklore and wisdom, from the magical yew tree to the bad-tempered dandelion. Here are traditional tales about the trees and plants that shape our landscapes and our lives through the seasons. They explore the complex relationship between people and plants, in lowlands and uplands, fields, bogs, moors, woodlands and towns.

Read by a cast of award-winning narrators, this collection contains some of the most timeless and enchanting folk and fairy tales collected by the Brothers Grimm. The Brothers Grimm collected the original fairy tales that Americans are most familiar with today. Lyrically translated and...

The Iliad is one of the two great epics of Homer, and is typically described as one of the greatest war stories of all time, but to say the Iliad is a war story does not begin to describe the emotional sweep of its action and characters: Achilles, Helen, Hector, and other heroes of Greek myth and history in the tenth and final year of the Greek siege of Troy.

For those looking for the real story behind the fictionalized movie account of the 47 Ronin story, this is the definitive, fascinating account of this unforgettable tale of a band of samurai who defied the Emperor to avenge the disgrace and death of their master, and faced certain death as a result. It led to one of the bloodiest episodes in Japanese history, and in the process, created a new set of heroes in Japan.

First published in 1908, The Wind in the Willows belongs to a golden age of children’s book. These charming tales of the riverbank, describing the adventures of Ratty, Mole, Badger, and their irrepressible but conceited friend, Toad of Toad Hall, have become classics loved as much, perhaps, by adults as by children.

One of the most successful and beloved Victorian fairy tales... The Princess and the Goblin is the story of Princess Irene and her friend Curdie, who come face to face with the dreaded mountain goblins. This children's fantasy novel was originally published in 1872. It uses subtle layers of symbolism to tell a story of courage and honor.

Quint magic has never chosen a human before, and the Elders Council is convinced Lera is a mistake. When the quint refuses to be cleaved apart, the enraged elders give them a choice: exile from Lunos or demotion to the lowest of trainees. Subject again to the humiliations and deadly trials they endured centuries ago, the males now face a new challenge - training Lera to survive. River, Shade, Coal, and Tye will do whatever it takes to keep Lera safe. But Lera will do whatever she must to keep them together - even if it means putting herself in mortal danger.

With the help of the most iconic children’s stories of all time—including Aesop’s fables, The Three Little Pigs, Hansel and Gretel, and so many others—bedtime stories are proven to help foster a bond between parents and children, lower kids' stress levels, and reinforce their literacy skills and mastery of language.

Brought to life by Academy Award-winning actor F. Murray Abraham and an ensemble cast of narrators, and featuring original music by Michael Bacon, this collection contains Hans Christian Andersen’s most beloved fairy tales, as well as a selection of lesser-known favorites. Unlike the...

This reissue of the 1919 classic combines the immortal stories from Homer's Iliad and Odyssey into one glorious saga of heroism and magical adventure. Beloved by generations, Padraic Colum's masterful retelling of these epic adventures is remarkably fresh, consistently spellbinding, and unmatched for its richness and poetry.

Aesop's Fables are stories based on analogies and caricatures featuring mostly animals. These stories got the collective name Aesop’s Fables from the person who collected the stories. Aesop, popularly believed to have been a Phrygian slave, collected his fables sometime around the sixth century BC. Whatever his real story may be, the fables he collected feature valuable lessons.

Things are looking up. For the first time in what feels like years, October "Toby" Daye has been able to pause long enough to take a breath and look at her life - and she likes what she sees. She has friends. She has allies. She has a squire to train and a King of Cats to love, and maybe, just maybe, she can let her guard down for a change.

In this celebrated novel, Margaret Laurence writes with grace, power, and deep compassion about Rachel Cameron, a woman struggling to come to terms with love, with death, with herself and her world. Trapped in a milieu of deceit and pettiness – her own and that of others – Rachel longs for...

Young Princess Irene is sent to the country to be raised in a half-farmhouse, half-castle located in the side of a mountain. While exploring the top of the castle, Irene becomes lost and inexplicably finds her way to a mystifying and beautiful woman spinning a thread. Princess Irene is drawn to the woman whom she discovers is her great-great-grandmother. But after she returns, her nurse, Lootie, refuses to believe in the old woman's existence.

A famine has settled over the land. The children of a poor woodcutter are abandoned in the woods by their cruel stepmother who believes she and her husband will starve as a result of providing for the children. Days of wandering lead them to a beautiful cottage made of gingerbread and candy, which the children begin to eat. Lured inside by an old woman who promises hot baths, soft beds, and more delicious food, the children are captured and enslaved by what turns out to be a cannibalistic witch. The resourceful children must rely on their wits to make a daring escape.

Some folk stories endure generation after generation because, although they are not literal, they resound in truths on a human scale. Folktales remind us of wisdom so elemental it is often lost in the rush of everyday life, so that "sometimes common sense makes no sense at all." The six wonder tales on this audiobook are gems of the genre. They have a "long ago and far away" quality.