POLISH FAIRY TALES - illustrated children's tales from Poland

Book excerpt: Herein are classic folklore selections from a large collection made by A. J. Glinski in 1862. These fairy tales come from a far and distant past and may even date from primitive Aryan times. They represent the folklore current among the peasantry of the Eastern provinces of Poland, and also in those provinces formerly known as White Russia. In this 148 page volume, with 19 exquisite and beautiful colour plates by Cecile Walton, you will find the stories of: The Frog Princess, Princess Miranda And Prince Hero, The Eagles, The Whirlwind, The Good Ferryman And The Water Nymphs, The Princess Of The Brazen Mountain and The Bear In The Forest Hut. Poland is on the little known “Amber Road”, a trade route that extends from St Petersburg, on the Baltic Sea and goes South through Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Slovenia to Italy on the Mediterranean Sea. As such it is not surprising to find these six exquisite tales embedded in Polish folklore. In olden days not only were goods and amber traded but so were stories and tales. Fairy tales were originally told to teach the young the lessons of life. In olden times it was often necessary to teach that good people had to make a stand against evil, or else evil would rule. Sometimes this meant following a path that paralleled that of the forces of evil – and this had to be learned at a young age. In these tales the defeat of the evil protagonist is always guaranteed. Fairy tales continue to be popular and continue to be used to teach these lessons, for it would seem that the forces of evil have not yet learned from history that Good always wins! TAGS: folklore, fairy tales, myths, legends, children’s stories, bedtime, fables, Polish fairy tales, Frog Princess, Princess Miranda, Prince Hero, Eagles, Whirlwind, Good Ferryman, Water Nymphs, Brazen Mountain, Bear, Forest Hut, poland, amber road, route, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Slovenia, Italy, illustrated, Baltic, Russia