Little Golden Books Fairy Tales Library

It's the holidays and the challenge of getting gifts for ten nephews, nieces, and godchildren has arrived again. It's always hampered with the fact that three of those children's birthdays also fall within five weeks of the holiday so I have to consider those gifts when choosing the others.

I like to give books, being an aunt and godmother to several readers, but choosing books for all of them is also challenging. And with my personal passions, I like to share fairy tales with the children, too, without boring them. I love picture books for sharing fairy tales and there are many, many wonderful books out there. Again, the challenge of price, individual tastes keeps me from being as lavish as I would like. One of the nieces is receiving the brunt of the fairy tale themed gifts from me this year since she is firmly entrenched in her princess stage of childhood development. She is receiving Enchanted Forest - Children's Game and The Golden Book of Fairy Tales (Golden Classics) for Christmas and birthday this year. But with the recent resurgence of the Golden Books library, I am tempted to add on a few inexpensive titles to their gifts.

I have a great affection for the Little Golden Books because they were the literature of my earliest years. My personal library started with many of the Little Golden Books library and one of my all time favorite childhood books was a Little Golden Book: The Monster at the End of This Book. My love of reading was fostered by owning these books that my parents could afford for me. So when I see those golden spines, I have a happy reaction, even though I don't always consider the illustrations or writing to be the absolute best in some of the titles. But some are great--after all some well known illustrators contributed to the line or got their start there.

I'm seeing Little Golden Books in more places again and they have been printing and reprinting many fairy tales. Many titles are Disney related since Disney has a partnership, but not all are. Since Disney is easy enough to find if you want it, that's not my focus. I want to celebrate the other fairy tales from Little Golden Books, some of them tales that children do not know so well and some that are harder to find in any picture book format, such as Wild Swans and Twelve Dancing Princesses--although there are some beautiful editions of both out there! So here's an easy, inexpensive way to add a fairy tale or two to a child's library for about $4 a pop this season.

And, if these sell well, perhaps Golden will also resurrect titles of years past like Hansel and Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood.

First on the list is The Princess and the Pea (Little Golden Book) illustrated by Jana Christy, pictured at the top of this post.

The Blue Book of Fairy Tales: "Three favorite fairy tales—Rapunzel, Beauty and the Beast, and Toads and Diamonds—are brought beautifully to life in this classic Little Golden Book from 1959, with breathtaking illustrations by the inimitable Gordon Laite." I've ordered this one for myself, too. I never owned it as a child and wish I had!




The Wild Swans (Little Golden Books) illustrated by Gordon Laite



The Three Bears by F. Rojankovsky



Three Little Pigs (Little Golden Book) is based on the Disney animated version.



The Gingerbread Man (Big Little Golden Book) by Nancy Nolte (Author), Richard Scarry (Illustrator)



The Twelve Dancing Princesses (Little Golden Book) by Jane Werner



Cinderella (Little Golden Book) "The original Little Golden Book from the 1940s featuring Walt Disney’s Cinderella is back!" This is a Disney title but it is so retro in appearance that it is fun to look at.



Puss in Boots (Little Golden Book) by Kathryn Jackson



If you like Little Golden Books or know someone who does, this book, Golden Legacy: How Golden Books Won Children's Hearts, Changed Publishing Forever, and Became An American Icon Along the Way (Deluxe Golden Book), may also make a great gift. It's on my wishlist for me!