An absolutely stunning book from its cover to its contents. I am an avid lover of fairy tales, though I will admit, I am always cloying for content beyond Grimms and the usual stock European tales. This book has those, which some I did enjoy, but also includes stories from Japan and Vietnam, two places that desperately need more attention when it comes to bringing stories to a Western audience. I also appreciated the stories coming from the Ukraine and Siberia, which also doesn't get a lot of notice when it comes to fairy tales.

Though I was already familiar with "The Firebird," "The Six Swans," and "Bluebeard" I was surprised to see that the rest were completely new to me, which is always a delight. My favorites included "Kotura, Lord of the Winds," "The Areca Tree," "The Maid of the Copper Mountain," "The Six Swans," "The Story of One Who Set Out to Study Fear," and "The Frog Princess."