The Yellow Fairy Book (First Folio Society Edition)

The fourth volume of the Folio Society’s twelve-volume Rainbow Fairy Books, newly illustrated by Danuta Mayer and introduced by Maria Tatar.

Andrew Lang’s Yellow Fairy Book first appeared from Longmans in 1894, the fourth in the series of coloured fairy books that began with The Blue Fairy Book in 1889. It gathers forty-eight tales from many sources: Russian, German, French and Icelandic stories, versions of Native American tales drawn from the Smithsonian’s Bureau of Ethnology, and several by Hans Christian Andersen, including “Thumbelina” and “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. Lang’s preface, which defends the genre against folklorists’ objections that tales should not be dressed up for children, credits the translators and adapters, among them his wife, Leonora Lang. The original illustrations were by H. J. Ford. The Folio Society’s Rainbow series (2004–2014) replaced Ford’s illustrations with new work by a different artist for each volume. Here the artist is Danuta Mayer, and the introduction is by Tatar, a scholar of fairy tales.

First Folio Society edition. Originally published by Longmans, Green & Co., 1894. Large octavo, 358pp. Bright yellow buckram, blocked in gold, silver foil and green, with a yellow upper edge. In the publisher’s green slipcase. Fine, a pristine copy, received unopened and unsealed only to verify the edition and condition.

Not currently on display in store. For viewing or more information, please contact: rarebooks@harryhartog.com.au

Catalogue Number: HH000923