14 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 the fairy tale you know has a cousin in another corner of Europe?
In Europa's Fairy Book, Joseph Jacobs brings together folk and fairy tales from many parts of Europe. Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, and Androcles and the Lion share a collection full of kings, poor boys, clever girls, and foolish giants. These are short tales of wonder, trials, and rewards.
Jacobs gives these traditional stories a plain, lively voice, as though a storyteller sits nearby. Across different lands, familiar patterns emerge: a young person begins with little, faces a trial, and finds help through kindness or cleverness. The pleasure lies both in each tale and in noticing how stories echo one another across borders.
What you’ll discover
- Familiar names together Meet Cinderella, Snow White, and other familiar figures within a wider world of European tales.
- A voice for sharing Enjoy clear, lively storytelling that invites you to read a tale aloud to someone nearby.
- Kindness meets a trial Follow young people who begin with little and find help through kindness or cleverness.
- Stories that cross borders Notice how tales from different places share patterns of wonder, trial, and reward.
- Wonder in short tales Step among kings, poor boys, clever girls, and foolish giants without settling into a long plot.
Who will love it
You will love this book if you enjoy fairy tales told aloud, like spotting how one story wears different clothes, or read to children and want rhymes and clever heroes.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Familiar tales cross European borders
- A mother's care survives through magic
- Foolishness brings trouble and laughter
- Kindness changes how Bella sees
- Magic makes sibling bonds visible
- Trust matters when explanations are impossible
- Lost love leads into strange journeys
- Small heroes must think for themselves
- Recurring patterns connect the tales
Who’s who
- Cinder-MaidA nobleman's daughter who sleeps on the cinders and seeks help at her mother's hazel tree so she can go to the Prince's ball.
- Reynard the FoxA cunning fox who tricks his partner Bruin the Bear out of honey and fish, and escapes by his wits.
- BellaThe youngest of a merchant's three daughters, who asks for only a rose and goes to live with a Beast to save her father.
- AnimaA curious princess who marries an unseen husband and must complete tasks set by his mother to see him again.
- Prince EdgarA king's son handed to a giant who sets him tasks, helped by the giant's Master-Maid.
- John the TrueA king's foster brother who brings home a princess by ship and silently guards the king from three dangers.
- JohnnieA farmer's son who drops pebbles and crumbs in the forest and protects his sister Grizzle from a witch.
- SnowwhiteA princess with skin white as snow and cheeks red as blood, hunted by her vain stepmother and sheltered by three dwarfs.
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 14 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
Europa's Fairy Book 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.
Europa's Fairy Book
by Joseph Jacobs · 1916
A hazel tree gives Cinder-Maid a sky-blue gown, and a little tailor outwits giants using a piece of cheese.
Medium level2–5 hours to read20 languages
Learn a language with medium 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
“Whatever John the True does, he does for me.”
In short
What would you do if a bird in a hazel tree told you to shake the branches and open the first nut? Cinder-Maid does it, and out comes a sky-blue silk dress embroidered with stars.
Europa's Fairy Book at a glance
- Reading time
- About 3 h 35 min2 h 50 min fast, 4 h 15 min slow
- Length
- 51,300 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1916by Joseph Jacobs
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
Cinder-Maid wins a Prince with a hazel tree
The book opens with Cinder-Maid, a nobleman's daughter who sleeps on the cinders in her stepmother's scullery. A herald announces a Royal Ball where the King's son will choose a bride. Her stepsisters get fine dresses, while she only helps them dress.
When the family drives away, she goes to her mother's grave, where she once planted a hazel tree. She sings a rhyme to it. A bird answers and tells her to shake the tree and open the first nut. Out come a sky-blue silk dress, copper shoes and a copper carriage drawn by four milk-white horses. The bird warns her to be home before midnight.
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 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1916
- Language
- English
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Jacobs, Joseph. Europa's Fairy Book. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/europas-fairy-book.
Jacobs, J. (2026). Europa's fairy book. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/europas-fairy-book (Original work published 1916)
Jacobs, Joseph. Europa's Fairy Book. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/europas-fairy-book.
@book{jacobs2026europas,
author = {Jacobs, Joseph},
title = {Europa's Fairy Book},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/europas-fairy-book},
note = {First published 1916}
}
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 Europa's Fairy Book
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 Europa's Fairy Book about?
It is a collection of twenty-five fairy tales found in much the same form across Europe, including Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, Snowwhite and Hansel and Gretel. Joseph Jacobs retells each one and adds notes on where they came from.
Why does Cinderella have golden shoes instead of glass slippers?
Jacobs chose gold because most versions use gold or another hard material, and the stepsisters' cut feet only make sense with a rigid shoe. Glass appears only in a few versions that descend from Perrault.
Who is Peggy in the dedication?
Peggy is Jacobs's granddaughter, and the book is addressed to her as a gift from Ganpa, his grandfatherly name. The letter says the tales are the ones that mothers across Europe have long told their children.
The author
Joseph Jacobs
1854–1916 · Australian folklorist and historian
Joseph Jacobs was born in Sydney, Australia, in 1854. He moved to England in 1872 and to the United States in 1900. He was a folklorist, historian, and writer. He published English Fairy Tales in 1890 and More English Fairy Tales in 1894. He died in Yonkers, New York, in 1916.
“Whatever John the True does, he does for me.”
More by Joseph Jacobs
See all their booksMore 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
