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About this book

What if a journey through the woods leads to a dangerous bargain—or a chance to change your fate?

The Blue Fairy Book, collected by Andrew Lang, brings together tales from several traditions, where ordinary life opens suddenly onto magic. A poor household, a royal palace, or a woodland journey becomes the starting point for something wonderful or dangerous. Familiar stories sit beside stranger adventures, with enchanted animals, clever children, and seemingly impossible quests.

In Cinderella, magical help offers a young woman a path beyond cruelty at home. Beauty and the Beast explores an unsettling encounter with a creature whose appearance inspires fear. Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp links poverty and ambition to a powerful object that draws dangerous attention. Across these stories, kindness, courage, and quick thinking can change a life.

What you’ll discover

  • Familiar tales, darker edges Return to Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast, where magic meets cruelty and fear.
  • Power with a price Follow Aladdin into a tale where a magical object's power brings dangerous attention.
  • More than one virtue Discover stories that favour generosity and patience, alongside others that reward boldness or a good trick.
  • Wonder beyond the familiar Step from well-known tales into stranger adventures filled with enchanted animals and impossible quests.
  • Ordinary lives, sudden magic Enter households, palaces, and woods where an unexpected encounter can change a person's fate.

Is it for you?

Readers who enjoy magical quests, clever escapes, and the darker edges of familiar childhood stories will find plenty to enjoy.

What’s inside

The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary

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15-minute summary
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8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
Large print hardcover
8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.

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25 languages, side by side

Fairy Tales

El libro azul de las hadas

by Andrew Lang

Children, enchanted animals, and adventurers face dangers in fairy tales.

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El libro azul de las hadas by Andrew Lang, the cover

From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 5

The Blue Fairy Book gathers stories in which ordinary life opens suddenly onto magic. A poor household, a royal palace, or a journey through the woods can become the starting point for an encounter with something wonderful or dangerous. Wishes have consequences. Animals speak. People hide beneath unfamiliar shapes. A small act of kindness can matter more than rank or wealth.

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The author

Andrew Lang

1844–1912 · Scottish poet and folklorist

Andrew Lang was a Scottish writer born in Selkirk in 1844. He lived in London and died in Banchory in 1912. He wrote poetry, novels, literary criticism, and works on folklore. He edited The Blue Fairy Book, published in 1889, and other fairy-book collections, including The Violet Fairy Book in 1901.

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Questions about El libro azul de las hadas

Can I read it free?

Yes. The beginning, from the first page to the end of chapter 1, and the first 5 minutes of the audiobook are free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 90 days, with the eBook to keep. After that, your first year is 50% off. You also get 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.

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Can my family read too?

Yes. The whole household reads and listens: up to 5 readers, each with their own shelf and their own place in every book.

What if it is not for me?

Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. If you have paid and the library is not for you, ask within 60 days of your first payment and we refund it in full.

What stories are in The Blue Fairy Book?

The collection includes Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Sleeping Beauty, Little Red Riding Hood, Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp, and Jack and the Beanstalk. It also contains less familiar tales, including East of the Sun and West of the Moon and The Bronze Ring.

Did Andrew Lang write the fairy tales?

Andrew Lang collected the tales rather than inventing them all himself. The Blue Fairy Book draws on older storytelling traditions and earlier written collections. His role is to bring these different stories together in one volume.

Why is it called The Blue Fairy Book?

Blue identifies the volume within Andrew Lang's series of colour-named fairy books. It does not describe a shared setting or subject within the stories. The Blue Fairy Book appeared in 1889 and began the series.

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