7 h 11 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 7 h 11 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if kindness is your strongest weapon, and the animal beside the road knows more than the king?
In Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen by Alexander Chodzko, humble heroes face hard tasks in a world where magic is close to daily life. These tales come from Russian, Polish, Serbian, Czech and other Slavic traditions. Kings set hard tasks, poor farmers face danger, and witches wait in strange forest houses.
The youngest son may be mocked, but patience and good advice give him a chance. The clever peasant faces powers far greater than himself. Across tales of village life, magic helpers and family troubles, kindness meets greed, courage meets cruelty, and an ordinary person must find a way through.
What you’ll discover
- Village and pasture tales Enter a world of villages and pastures, where ordinary people face danger and unexpected magic.
- The humble hero Follow overlooked younger sons and poor peasants whose kindness matters more than strength or standing.
- Magic close at hand Meet talking horses, helpful birds and small objects that offer answers to seemingly impossible problems.
- Courage against power Watch clever villagers face greedy lords and heroes confront rulers or monsters stronger than themselves.
- Family, justice and greed Explore homes troubled by jealous brothers, cruel masters and stepmothers who make children suffer.
Who will love it
This book suits listeners who love fairy tales with witches, talking animals, magic gifts and riddles. It is a fine choice for parents, teachers and collectors of folklore.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Ordinary needs open onto strange worlds
- Courtesy can unlock the seasons
- Royal power cannot command fate
- Pride and welcome shape an encounter
- Small kindnesses become practical help
- Unusual gifts find their purpose
- Good advice competes with golden appearances
- Overlooked people receive unexpected openings
- Actions reveal the heart without argument
Who’s who
- MaroucklaA kind and patient orphan whose stepmother sends her up a winter mountain, where she meets the twelve months and wants only to survive.
- PlavacekA boy found floating in a basket, sent by a king who fears the Fates to fetch three golden hairs from the Sun.
- GeorgeA king's servant who learns the language of animals and must win the Maid with the Golden Locks to save his own life.
- Prince DobrotekA prince who frees a talking skull and rides a magic horse to rescue his bride from a dwarf magician.
- NiezguinekThe youngest of twelve brothers hatched from eggs, whose strength and clever horse carry him through the house of old Yaga and beyond.
- Old YagaA witch who lives in a hut on a rooster's leg and sometimes helps, sometimes devours, those who visit her.
- KosteyAn immortal sorcerer who lays enchantments on kingdoms and seeks to carry off princesses, and whose life is hidden in an egg.
- The Red FoxA hungry fox who repays a kindly prince with advice, a sweeping tail and bold disguises on the road to the firebird.
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- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
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- 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.
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Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen
by Alexander Chodzko · 1864
A starving man climbs a crystal mountain and finds twelve silent figures around a fire that gives out gold.
Medium level2–5 hours to read2 languages
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In short
What would you do if a starving man climbed a crystal mountain and found twelve silent figures around a fire that never goes out? In the first tale of this collection, he asks only to warm his hands.
Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen at a glance
- Reading time
- About 4 h 5 min3 h 15 min fast, 4 h 55 min slow
- Length
- 58,700 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1864by Alexander Chodzko
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
Kindness is rewarded and greed is punished
The collection opens with two brothers. The elder grows rich and cruel. The younger stays honest and poor, with many children and no bread in the house.
Hungry and cold, the younger brother climbs the Crystal Mountain, where a fire burns forever. Twelve strange beings sit around it. He asks politely to warm himself, and an old man with a white beard rises from the flames. The twelve fill a sack with embers as light as paper. At home the embers have become gold pieces.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1864
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Chodzko, Alexander. Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/fairy-tales-of-the-slav-peasants-and-herdsmen.
Chodzko, A. (2026). Fairy tales of the Slav peasants and herdsmen. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/fairy-tales-of-the-slav-peasants-and-herdsmen (Original work published 1864)
Chodzko, Alexander. Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/fairy-tales-of-the-slav-peasants-and-herdsmen.
@book{chodzko2026fairy,
author = {Chodzko, Alexander},
title = {Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/fairy-tales-of-the-slav-peasants-and-herdsmen},
note = {First published 1864}
}
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What is Fairy Tales of the Slav Peasants and Herdsmen about?
It collects about twenty Slavic folk tales told by villagers and shepherds. They follow poor brothers, orphans, princes and fools who meet witches, magic horses and enchanted objects, and learn that kindness and courage are repaid while pride and greed are punished.
Who is Baba Yaga or old Yaga in these tales?
Old Yaga is a witch who lives in a hut that stands on a rooster's leg and turns on command. In these tales she sometimes helps a hero with gifts and advice, and sometimes threatens to eat travelers who enter her house.
Who is Kostey in the stories?
Kostey is an immortal sorcerer or ogre who puts whole kingdoms to sleep and carries off princesses. His life is hidden in an egg inside a duck, a hare and a coffer, and the hero must find it to defeat him.
The author
Alexander Chodzko
1804–1891 · Polish poet and orientalist
Alexander Chodzko (1804–1891) was a Polish poet and orientalist, born in what is now Belarus. He published poetry in 1829 and collected Slavic folk tales. He worked as a diplomat in Persia and later lived in France, where he taught Slavic languages at the Collège de France. He died near Paris.
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