15 minSummaryRead it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook editionPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if wit and kindness matter more than strength, and the poorest person has the best chance?
Georgian Folk Tales brings together short stories from Georgia, where Europe and Asia meet. High mountains rise in the north, and the Black Sea lies to the west. Gathered for English readers by Marjory Scott Wardrop, these tales offer a way into a culture with its own language, alphabet, and long Christian history.
These stories pass from mouth to mouth before they reach the page. Their shapes are plain and strong: a younger or poorer person may succeed where someone powerful fails. Wit, courage, and kindness matter here. Rather than following one long plot, you move from tale to tale, discovering familiar folk patterns in stories from the Caucasus.
What you’ll discover
- A mountain country's stories Enter the tales of a land between the Black Sea and the Caspian.
- Wit against power Discover stories where cleverness and kindness often count for more than rank or strength.
- Unlikely people who succeed Follow younger and poorer figures whose chances need not depend on their place in life.
- The pull of oral tales Enjoy plain, strong story patterns carried from one telling to the next.
- A door into Georgia Let Wardrop's collection introduce you to tales from a culture with its own language and alphabet.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy fairy tales told plainly, tricksters and brave youngest sons, or the folklore of places far from your own. It suits listeners who like short tales and sharp, funny endings.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Clever escapes open a strange world
- A pupil learns to escape
- Kindness answers cruelty with unexpected help
- The overlooked find unexpected power
- Fate and promises resist escape
- Mercy creates bonds beyond family
- Mingrelian heroes mix courage with cunning
- Small tricks expose large claims
- Different tales share familiar moral patterns
Who’s who
- The peasant's sonA poor boy apprenticed to a devil, he uses quick changes of shape to escape and to make money for his father.
- ConkiajgharunaA girl in rags, mistreated by her stepmother, she is helped by a magic cow and wants a life of dignity.
- GhvthisavariA boy born in the wild woods, strong with the bow, who wants to protect his mother and trusts the beasts he spares.
- AsphurtzelaThe youngest son of a widow, he sets out to rescue his brothers and sister from a hundred-headed devi.
- The Little ThiefA thief of astonishing cunning who outwits a king's guards, traps and tricks, and wants to prove himself the cleverest.
- The foxA helpful and demanding animal who builds a prince's fortune with the help of a wolf, a bear and an eagle.
- GeriaA poor man's son who crosses twelve mountains to win the sister of twelve demis, and fears no one.
- SanartiaA strong, quick-witted prince thrown into the sea by his father, who wants to be known by his deeds.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 15 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 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.
Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout. The eBook opens when the book texts go online.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Georgian Folk Tales in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Georgian Folk Tales
by Marjory Scott Wardrop · 1894
A boy changes into a hound and a horse to make money, then an apple to escape a devil, all in the first tale.
Easy read2–5 hours to read20 languages
Learn a language with easy classicsSpanishFrenchGermanItalianJapanesePortugueseEnglishHow we measure levels
Excellent
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeRenews every year · Cancel anytimeHow it works
- Read, large type too
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
“Your own copper is better than someone else’s gold.”
In short
Picture a boy who must escape a devil who was once his teacher. He becomes a dove, a hound, a falcon and a horse.
Georgian Folk Tales at a glance
- Reading time
- About 3 h 35 min2 h 50 min fast, 4 h 15 min slow
- Length
- 51,400 words
- Library level
- Easy short sentences, plain words
- First published
- 1894by Marjory Scott Wardrop
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A clever boy outwits his devil teacher
The book opens with Master and Pupil. A poor peasant takes his son to find a trade, and a devil named Vakhraca rises from a stream. He will teach the boy for a year. If the father cannot pick out his son at the end, the boy belongs to the devil for good.
The boy warns his father that the master will turn all the pupils into doves. The father points to the right bird, and the angry devil must let him go. Then the boy becomes a hound that catches a hare before the eyes of hunting nobles, and his father sells him for a high price. The boy escapes when the nobles are out of sight. He does the same as a falcon.
Renews every year · Cancel anytime
You looked at
Which edition is right for me
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet or computer. Your place follows you, and you can make the type as big as you like.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 15 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1894
- Language
- English
- Level
- Easy read
Cite this edition
Wardrop, Marjory Scott. Georgian Folk Tales. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/georgian-folk-tales.
Wardrop, M. S. (2026). Georgian folk tales. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/georgian-folk-tales (Original work published 1894)
Wardrop, Marjory Scott. Georgian Folk Tales. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/georgian-folk-tales.
@book{wardrop2026georgian,
author = {Wardrop, Marjory Scott},
title = {Georgian Folk Tales},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/georgian-folk-tales},
note = {First published 1894}
}
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every eBookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Georgian Folk Tales
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 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.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Georgian Folk Tales about?
It is a collection of folk tales from Georgia, in the Caucasus. It includes tales of devils, griffins, wicked stepmothers, clever thieves, talking animals and kings who are outwitted, gathered from Georgian, Mingrelian and Gurian sources.
Who translated Georgian Folk Tales and when was it published?
Marjory Scott Wardrop translated the tales, and the book was published in 1894. She worked from printed collections made in Tiflis and Saint Petersburg, and dedicated the book to the anthropologist Edward Tylor.
What is a devi in these stories?
A devi is a giant, often many-headed, who lives in a house in the wilds, eats people and guards treasure or captive maidens. In Mingrelian tales the same kind of creature is called a demi.
The author
Marjory Scott Wardrop
1869–1909 · English translator and writer
Marjory Scott Wardrop (1869–1909) was an English writer and translator of Georgian literature. She was born in London and travelled to Georgia. Her Georgian Folk Tales appeared in 1894. She also translated The Knight in the Panther’s Skin; her translation was published in 1912, after her death.
“Your own copper is better than someone else’s gold.”
More like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
