Philip, Neil. The Illustrated Book of Fairy Tales: Spellbinding Stories From Around the World. Illustrated by Nilesh Mistry. Dorling Kindersley, 1997. ISBN 0-7894-2794-X.”$19.95. 160 pp. A 5+ FI Reviewed by Sandra L. Tidwell This varied collection of fifty-two fairy tales from thirty-five countries/cultures in the world includes the familiar fairy tale Jack in the Beanstalk from England and Cinderella from France. It also has unique stories, such as The Wonderful Brocade from China and Why the Sea Moans from Brazil. Philips begins this book with an interesting introduction and short articles on the history of fairy tales and storytellers. The tales are divided into the following sections: Under a Spell, Riches & Rags, Heroes & Heroines, and True Love Conquers All. The fairy tales are from one to six pages long, but most are two pages. Just as a fairy tale is woven through years of tradition, Mistry’s color illustrations are woven through the text, making each page turn interesting. On the edges of the pages are small photographs of pertinent places and paintings, and paragraphs explaining the history and evolution of the fairy tale and its similarities with those of other countries. These features add interest to each selection, making the book a good collection for silent reading for a single reader or for reading aloud to a small group at home or school. Other features of the book include a detailed index. Use the following list of countries/cultures represented to use this collection to its fullest: Australian, Brazilian, Cape Verdean, Chinese, Costa Rican, Czech, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Indian, Inuit, Iranian, Irish, Italian, Jamaican, Japanese, Jewish, Kenyan, Maori, Native American, North American, Norwegian, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Scottish, Spanish, Surinamese, Trinidadian, Vietnamese, and Zairian.
