European Fairy Tales

Have you ever heard of a wolf who can talk to a little girl in a red hood. Or a beautiful slipper made of pure glass. What about a yummy little house made of gingerbread and candy. I am the magic in those stories. I am the sparkle that turns a pumpkin into a royal carriage and the cleverness that helps a hero outsmart a giant. For a very long time, I was just a whisper shared around a warm fire on a cold night, a story to make people smile or think. Hello. I am European Fairy Tales.

For hundreds and hundreds of years, I didn't live on paper. I lived inside people’s voices. During a time called the Middle Ages, grandmothers told me to their grandchildren, who grew up and told me to their own grandchildren. I was a fun way to pass the time and to teach important lessons about being brave, kind, and smart. But some people worried that if I was only spoken, I might get lost or forgotten. A man in France named Charles Perrault decided to write me down to keep me safe. In the year 1697, he published a book with some of my adventures, like the story of 'Cinderella'. A long time after that, I traveled to Germany and met two brothers, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. They loved me so much. They journeyed all over the countryside, listening to people tell my stories and carefully writing each one down. Their first book of my tales, with stories like 'Hansel and Gretel,' came out in 1812. And in Denmark, a writer named Hans Christian Andersen loved me so much that he wrote brand new stories for me in the 1800s, like 'The Little Mermaid'.

I have changed a little bit over the years. At first, some of my stories were a bit scary. They were told to teach children important lessons, like not wandering off into the woods alone. But as time went on, people began to share my kinder, more hopeful adventures. I became a way to dream about good winning over evil and about the wonderful idea of 'happily ever after'. Today, you can find me almost everywhere. I sparkle on movie screens, I live in colorful picture books, and I come alive in school plays. I still love teaching about being courageous and good to others. So next time you read about a brave hero or a clever princess, remember me. I am a timeless adventure, always waiting for you.