Foreign fairy tales tell about miracles and amazing people, and also make fun of human vices. Good necessarily defeats evil, generosity and courage are rewarded according to their deserts, and nobility always triumphs over meanness. We present to your attention a list of foreign folk tales, which will appeal to children of different ages.

Ayoga

The story "Ayoga" is named after a girl who became proud because everyone thought she was beautiful. She refused to go for water, and a neighbor girl went instead. She also got the pie that her mother baked. Out of resentment, Ayoga turned into a goose, which to this day flies and repeats its name so that no one confuses it with others.

Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves

The fairy tale "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" tells the story of two brothers. One of them, Kasim, became rich after the death of his father. And the other one, Ali Baba, quickly squandered everything. But he was lucky, he found a robbers’ cave with treasures. Ali Baba took some goodness and left. When his brother found out about the treasure and went to the cave, he could not moderate his greed. As a result, Kasim died at the hands of robbers.

Aladdin's magic lamp

The work “Aladdin's Magic Lamp” tells the story of a poor young man and his adventures. One day Aladdin met a dervish who introduced himself as his uncle. In fact, he was a sorcerer who, with the help of a young man, tried to get magic lamp. As a result of long adventures, Aladdin managed to defeat the dervish and remain with his beloved princess.

Humpback Princess

The heroine of the work “The Brokeback Princess” once offended a hunchbacked beggar. As a result of the vicissitudes of fate, he became the husband of a princess. When she managed to get rid of her hated husband, the girl was left with a hump. The princess ends up in the castle of a prince in a golden cloak. As a result, she gets rid of the hump and becomes the prince's wife.

Jack and the Beanstalk

"Jack and the Beanstalk" is the story of a poor boy who lived with his mother. One day he traded a cow for magic beans. Climbing up the stalk that grew from the beans, Jack took the gold, the duck and the ogre's harp. When in last time the giant tried to catch up with the boy, he cut down the stem and killed the cannibal. Then he married the princess and lived happily.

Pan Kotsky

The fairy tale “Pan Kotsky” tells about a cat whose owner took him to the forest when he grew old. There he was met by a fox. The cat called himself Pan Kotsky. Lisa invited him to become husband and wife. The red-haired cheat deceived the forest animals, who invited the couple to dinner, and by cunning made them afraid of the cat.

Why is the water in the sea salty?

The fairy tale “Why is the water in the sea salty” tells the story of two brothers. One day a poor man begged for meat from a rich man. He gave, but sent his brother to old Hiisi. As a reward for his courage, the poor man received a millstone that gives him everything he wants. Having learned this, the rich man begged the gift from his brother and did not want to give it back. While fishing, a millstone grinding salt did not stop and sank the boat.

Sinbad the Sailor

The fairy tale “Sinbad the Sailor” tells about the amazing adventures of the hero. One of the three stories tells of an island that turns out to be a whale. The second tells about Sinbad's meeting with the roc bird and the amazing rescue of the sailor. In the third, the hero had to survive a skirmish with a cannibal giant.

Worn down shoes

“The Worn Down Shoes” is a fairy tale that tells the story of 12 princesses and their secret. No one was able to figure out why the shoes of the girls, who were closed in their bedchamber, were worn out the next morning. Those who tried and failed to solve the riddle were deprived of their heads. Only a poor soldier managed to find out the secret of the princesses and get one of them as his wife.

Three Little Pigs

From the fairy tale “The Three Little Pigs,” children learn about the need to think through everything in advance. As the cold weather approached, one of the pig brothers, Naf-Naf, built a strong stone house. But Nif-Nif and Nuf-Nuf built frail buildings that could not withstand the onslaught of the wolf. All three brothers are saved in the house of the prudent Naf-Naf.

Wonderful pearl

“The Wonderful Pearl” is a fairy tale about a poor girl, Ua. She worked for an elder who abused her. One day the girl was asked to save the daughter of the lord of the waters, which she did. As a reward, Ua received a magical pearl that grants wishes. A wonderful thing helped the girl get rid of poverty and live happily with her lover.

Why does a hare have long ears?

The hero of the fairy tale “Why does the hare have long ears” is a small, timid animal. He overheard a conversation between a moose and his wife, when he was discussing who should give the antlers to. And he begged for the biggest horns for himself. And when a cone fell on his head, he was so scared that he got entangled in the bushes. He took the elk's antlers and gave the hare big ears because he loves to eavesdrop.

Three oranges

The tale “Three Oranges” is about how an old woman cursed the king’s son. According to her prophecy, as soon as he turned 21, the young man went to look for a tree with three oranges. He had to wander for a long time, but he found what he was looking for. Along with the oranges, the prince acquired a beautiful bride and married her.

Golden slipper

The fairy tale “The Golden Slipper” tells the story of two sisters Mugazo and Mukhalok. The first one was kind and obedient, but her stepmother did not love her. Mugazo had to experience a lot of troubles, because she turned into a turtle, a bird, and a persimmon. But thanks to the intercession of the goddess, the girl remained alive and married the king.

Two greedy bear cubs

“Two Greedy Little Bears” is an educational fairy tale for children. It tells about two cub brothers. One day they went on a trip together. When the cubs got hungry and found a wheel of cheese, they did not know how to share it. Because of their greed, they trusted the cunning fox, who deceived the cubs.

Jug of gold

The work “Jug of Gold” tells the story of a poor plowman who rented his land to his neighbor. When he was working in the field, he found a jug of gold. Unable to agree on who it belonged to, the plowmen turned to the king. However, instead of gold, he saw only snakes. Only the sages helped resolve such a controversial issue.

The Poor Man and the Wind Brothers

“The Poor Man and the Wind Brothers” is a fairy tale about two brothers: a poor man and a rich one. One was simple-minded, but had little good. The other is rich but greedy. One day the poor man had to turn to the winds, which left him without torment. They gave gifts to the man, but he was unable to save the gifts. The brother misappropriated them. But the winds helped the poor man not only return his goods, but also taught him to be smart.

How the Sun and Moon visited each other

“How the Sun and Moon visited each other” is a fairy tale about why the night luminary reflects light. When the Moon came to visit the Sun, she presented a star on a platter. Getting ready for a return visit, the King of Light ordered the tailor to sew a dress from clouds for a gift. But he refused, since the Moon constantly changes shape. Then the Sun allowed the night luminary to use its rays to dress up.

Peasant-Alyssum

The fairy tale “The Peasant Burachok” is named after the main character. He was an ordinary plowman, but his ingenuity surpassed any sage. Having learned about this, the gentleman did not believe the people’s stories and decided to check the man. He called Burachok to his place and asked him riddles. But he used his ingenuity and proved that he was smarter than the master.

A pot of porridge

The fairy tale “A Pot of Porridge” tells about a kind girl. Having met an old woman in the forest, she treated her to berries, for which she received a magic pot. This miracle dish was filled with delicious porridge as soon as the words were spoken. the right words. When the girl was weaned, her mother used the potty, but did not know how to stop it. As a result, the porridge filled the entire city.

I don’t remember exactly what year it was. For a whole month I hunted with enthusiasm, with wild joy, with that ardor that you bring to new passions.

I lived in Normandy, with a single relative, Jules de Banneville, in his family castle, alone with him, with his maid, footman and watchman. A dilapidated building surrounded by groaning fir trees in the center of long oak alleys along which the wind rushed; the castle seemed long abandoned. In the corridor, where the wind blew like in the alleys of a park, hung portraits of all those people who had once ceremoniously received noble neighbors in these rooms, now locked and filled with only antique furniture.

As for us, we simply ran into the kitchen, where there was only room for living, a huge kitchen, the dark corners of which were illuminated only when a new armful of wood was thrown into the huge fireplace. Every evening we dozed sweetly by the fireplace, in front of which our wet boots smoked, and the hunting dogs curled up at our feet barked in their sleep, seeing the hunt again; then we went upstairs to our room.

It was the only room, all the walls and ceiling of which were carefully plastered because of mice. But, whitewashed with lime, it remained bare, and only guns, arapniks and hunting horns hung on its walls; our teeth chattering from the cold, we climbed into bed, standing on both sides of this Siberian dwelling.

At a distance of one league from the castle the sheer bank fell into the sea; from the powerful breath of the ocean, tall bent trees moaned day and night, roofs and weather vanes creaked as if with a cry, and the entire venerable building cracked, filling with the wind through thinning tiles, through fireplaces wide as an abyss, through windows that no longer closed.

It was bitterly cold that day. Evening came. We were going to sit down at the table in front of the high fireplace, where a hare's back and two partridges were roasting on a bright fire, emitting a delicious smell.

My cousin looked up.

“It won’t be hot to sleep today,” he said.

I replied indifferently:

- Yes, but tomorrow morning there will be ducks on the ponds.

The maid, who was setting the table for us at one end and the servants at the other, asked:

- Do gentlemen know that today is Christmas Eve?

Of course, we didn’t know because we almost never looked at the calendar. My friend said:

“So there will be a night mass today.” So that's why they kept calling all day!

The maid answered:

- Yes and no, sir; They also called because Uncle Fournel had died.

Uncle Fournel, an old shepherd, was a local celebrity. He was ninety-six years old and had never been ill until a month ago when he caught a cold after falling into a swamp on a dark night. The next day he fell ill and since then has been on the verge of death.

My cousin turned to me:

“If you want, let’s go now and visit these poor people.”

He meant the old man's family - his fifty-eight-year-old grandson and his grandson's fifty-seven-year-old wife. The intermediate generation has long since died. They huddled in a miserable shack, at the entrance to the village, to the right.

I don’t know why, but the thought of Christmas in this wilderness put us in the mood to chat. We vied with each other to tell each other all sorts of stories about previous Christmas Eves, about our adventures on this crazy night, about past successes with women and about awakenings the next day - awakenings together, accompanied by surprise at this and risky surprises.

Thus, our lunch was delayed. Having finished with him, we smoked many pipes and, overwhelmed by the gaiety of hermits, the cheerful sociability that suddenly arises between two bosom friends, we continued to talk incessantly, going over in conversation the most intimate memories that are shared in hours of such closeness.

The maid, who had long since left us, appeared again:

“Sir, I’m leaving for mass.”

- Quarter past eleven.

- Shouldn't we go to church? – asked Jules. – Christmas mass is very interesting in the village.

I agreed, and we set off, wrapped in fur hunting jackets.

The severe frost stung my face and made my eyes water. The air was so cold that it took your breath away and your throat dried out. The deep, clear and stern sky was dotted with stars, they seemed to have turned pale from frost and flickered not like lights, but like sparkling pieces of ice, like shiny crystals. In the distance, on the ringing, dry and echoing earth, like copper, peasant clogs were ringing, and all around small village bells were ringing, sending their liquid and seemingly also chilly sounds into the freezing expanse of the night.

There was no sleep in the village. The roosters crowing, deceived by all these sounds, and passing by the barns, one could hear the animals moving, awakened by this roar of life.

Approaching the village, Jules remembered the Fournels.

“Here is their shack,” he said, “let’s go in!”

He knocked for a long time, but in vain. Finally, a neighbor saw us, leaving the house to go to church.

“They went to matins, gentlemen, to pray for the old man.”

“So we’ll see them when we leave the church,” Jules told me.

The setting moon stood out like a crescent on the edge of the horizon amid an endless scattering of sparkling grains thrown into space. And trembling lights moved across the black plain, heading from everywhere towards the incessantly ringing pointed bell tower. Across farms lined with trees, along dark valleys - these lights flashed everywhere, almost touching the ground. They were lanterns made from cow horns. Peasants walked with them ahead of their wives, dressed in white caps and wide black capes, accompanied by awakened children who held their hands.

Through open door The illuminated pulpit was visible in the church. A garland of cheap candles illuminated the middle of the church, and in its left aisle the plump wax baby Jesus, lying on real straw, among fir branches, flaunted his pink, cutesy nakedness.

The service has begun. The peasants bowed their heads and the women knelt and prayed. These ordinary people Having risen into the cold night, they looked movedly at the crudely painted image and folded their hands, looking with naive timidity at the wretched luxury of this children's performance.

The cold air shook the flames of the candles. Jules told me:

- Let's get out of here! It's still better outside.

Heading home along a deserted road, while the kneeling peasants shivered piously in the church, we again indulged in our memories and talked for so long that the service had already ended when we arrived back at the village.

A thin strip of light stretched from under the Fournels' door.

“They are watching over the dead,” said my cousin. “Let’s finally go see these poor people, it will make them happy.”

Several firebrands were burning in the hearth. The dark room, whose greasy walls were shiny, and whose worm-eaten beams were blackened with age, was full of the suffocating smell of fried blood sausage. On the large table, from under which a bread chest protruded like a huge belly, a candle was burning in a twisted iron candlestick; acrid smoke from the wick burned by the mushroom rose to the ceiling. The Fournels, husband and wife, broke their fast in private.

Gloomy, with a dejected look and dull peasant faces, they ate in concentration, without uttering a word. On the only plate standing between them lay a large piece of blood sausage, spreading a foul steam. From time to time, with the end of a knife, they cut a circle from it, put it on the bread and began to chew slowly.

When the husband's glass was empty, the wife took the jug and filled it with cider.

When we appeared, they stood up, sat us down, suggested that we “follow their example,” and after our refusal they began to eat again.

1 - About the little bus who was afraid of the dark

Donald Bisset


A fairy tale about how mother bus taught her little bus not to be afraid of the dark... About the little bus who was afraid of the dark read Once upon a time there was a little bus in the world. He was bright red and lived with his dad and mom in the garage. Every morning...

2 - Three kittens

Suteev V.G.

A short fairy tale for the little ones about three fidgety kittens and their funny adventures. Little children love short stories with pictures, which is why Suteev’s fairy tales are so popular and loved! Three kittens read Three kittens - black, gray and...

3 - Hedgehog in the fog

Kozlov S.G.


A fairy tale about a Hedgehog, how he was walking at night and got lost in the fog. He fell into the river, but someone carried him to the shore. It was a magical night! Hedgehog in the fog read Thirty mosquitoes ran out into the clearing and began to play...

4 - Apple

Suteev V.G.


A fairy tale about a hedgehog, a hare and a crow who could not divide the last apple among themselves. Everyone wanted to take it for themselves. But the fair bear judged their dispute, and everyone got a piece of the treat... Apple read It was late...

5 - Black Pool

Kozlov S.G.


A fairy tale about a cowardly Hare who was afraid of everyone in the forest. And he was so tired of his fear that he decided to drown himself in the Black Pool. But he taught the Hare to live and not be afraid! Black Whirlpool read Once upon a time there was a Hare...

6 - About the Hippopotamus, who was afraid of vaccinations

Suteev V.G.

A fairy tale about a cowardly hippopotamus who ran away from the clinic because he was afraid of vaccinations. And he fell ill with jaundice. Luckily, he was taken to the hospital and treated. And the hippopotamus became very ashamed of his behavior... About the Hippopotamus, who was afraid...

7 - In the sweet carrot forest

Kozlov S.G.


A fairy tale about what forest animals love most. And one day everything happened as they dreamed. In the sweet carrot forest read The hare loved carrots most of all. He said: - I would like it in the forest...

8 - Baby and Carlson

Astrid Lindgren


Short story about the kid and the prankster Carlson in B. Larin’s adaptation for children. Kid and Carlson read This story actually happened. But, of course, it happened far from you and me - in Swedish...

The folklore of the peoples of Europe, which over the course of many centuries developed in parallel with a rich literature going back to folk oral creativity and which, in one way or another, adopted the traditions of antiquity - ancient Greek and Roman culture, gave the world classic examples of folk tales. These are fairy tales about animals (famous, for example, “The Musicians of Bremen” adapted by the Brothers Grimm), fairy tales (among them the world-famous “Cinderella”), everyday tales and anecdotes.
Animals in the fairy tales of European peoples are often stable types, the embodiment of certain properties of human nature (the fox and fox are cunning and deceivers; the wolf is stupid, greedy and ferocious), it is easy to recognize in them representatives of certain classes: for example, in the one already mentioned It’s not difficult for a wolf to spot a feudal lord. “What an evil wolf you are! Why do you trample the weak underfoot? - ask the wasps who suffered from him in the French fairy tale “The Wolf, the Snail and the Wasps”, already with their rhetorical question characterizing the evil wolf, who also turns out to be a decent fool. The wolf is easily deceived by the owl that got caught in the teeth of the gray one in the funny Portuguese fairy tale “Ate the Owl!”
Obvious traces of the deification of the beast or the attitude towards these stories as magical for European fairy tales about animals is a long-past stage. These are, rather, allegories, allegories, fables, satirical narratives, often with moralizing overtones. There are also comic tales about animals, which serve primarily to make people laugh and entertain.
Magic tales of peoples foreign Europe characterized by a developed plot and dynamic action that captivates the reader and listener. Often these are detailed narratives, in them we find an ideal, from a popular point of view, hero, kind, mentally generous, who, after adventures, achieves wealth and happiness - marriage to a princess or a rich girl.
Fairy tales about a persecuted stepdaughter (such as “Cinderella”), beloved by all peoples of the world, exist in the folklore of the peoples of foreign Europe in the form of bright, memorable, detailed narratives that make it possible to create an unusually sweet image of an ideal heroine - a patient worker. These tales about a persecuted stepdaughter are comparable only to tales on a similar topic that are recorded among the peoples of Asia.
In addition, it should be noted the original Slovak fairy tale about a poor stepdaughter - “Twelve Months”, which served as a good basis for the famous play of the same name by S. Marshak.
The world of wizards, sorcerers, and good fairies in European fairy tales has long been perceived as poetic fiction. Magic wands and magic rings, wonderful pipes and so on have turned into imagery; sometimes it is not easy to discern their mythological basis. To the world fairy tale Foreign European peoples easily and naturally include not only wonderful helpers - an extraordinary puppy and a cat, a clever little frog - but also jokes, irony, disbelief in the miracles that are told in these fairy tales.
Everyday tales of European peoples are close to the atmosphere of real peasant or city life. This is a very common type of fairy tale in their folklore, close to an anecdote. Usually they are dominated by a comic atmosphere, the element of satire, and a savvy and dexterous hero acts simple origin. He is always characterized in action; the features of a certain social type (craftsman, peasant, seasoned soldier) and national features clearly appear in him, by which we recognize the cheerful French joker-hunters (“Three Hunters”) and the desperately brave Croatian soldier (“How the soldier shaved the devil").
By the way, isn’t he one of those fearless soldiers who fought for the independence of their homeland against Ottoman rule in the 70s of the last century? After all, the sympathy of storytellers in some other countries, such as Vietnam and China, has never attracted the soldiers. On the contrary, there the soldier is a target for the storyteller’s ridicule, since the feudal armies of these countries were often an instrument of suppression of their own peoples. And the people paid the soldiers and guards in the same coin, portraying them as fools and klutzes, completely devoid of ingenuity.
Unfortunately, now the facts of the living existence of fairy tales among the peoples of foreign Europe have become rare, and we, perhaps, are unlikely to be able to hear from our grandfather-storyteller on a quiet summer evening that same Croatian fairy tale “How a Soldier Shaved the Devil” or the Polish fairy tale “The Shepherd Who Had a Thousand Hares.” pass". But you can be sure that the Croatian listeners perceived the soldier as a Croat, and the Polish listeners perceived the hare shepherd, who escaped from Tatar captivity in ancient times, as a Pole.
Existing for centuries next to literature, the European fairy tale nourished it, gave it its vital juices.
Another Homeric epic - the ancient Greek "Odyssey" (different scientists attribute Homer's life to different centuries in the period from the 12th to the 7th centuries BC) contained interesting fairy-tale material. Many works of medieval literature were built on the basis of fairy tales, their images, motifs and plots. In the novels of chivalry, for example by the famous 12th-century French novelist Chrétien de Troyes, fairy tale fiction plays an important role. They feature wizards and sorcerers, enchanted castles, a love potion and other wonders. One of the significant works of French literature XII— The Romance of Renard, based on fairy tales about animals, is considered to be from the 13th century. Folk themes and the plots are palpable in European literature Renaissance - let us remember the short stories of the great Italian writer Giovanni Bocaccio (1313-1375), the creator of the Decameron, as well as the collection Pleasant Nights (1550-1553) written in imitation by Gian Francesca Straparola (1480 - about 1557), also Italian.
Study of folklore basis literary works, or, as scientists say, folklorism of literature, has long become an important direction in science, and it gives us a lot of evidence of the connection between European literary monuments and the fairy-tale element.
Thus, on the basis of narrative folklore, at the end of the 16th century, a German folk book of anecdotal stories about Schildburgers, residents of the city of Schild, was created. These stories sounded like a challenge to respectable burghers, numerous ruling princes: subsequently, according to the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, which legally secured the division of Germany, it broke up into three hundred independent principalities. Anecdotes about Schildburgers, with the help of laughter, comedy, and buffoonery, asserted the human right to happiness and personal independence from princes, emperors and other feudal lords. It is known that Friedrich Engels highly valued German folk books and dedicated a special article to them, first published in 1839. “These old folk books, with their ancient speech, with their typos and bad engravings, have an extraordinary poetic charm for me. They take me away from our confusing modern "orders, disorders and sophisticated relationships" into a world that is much closer to nature."
German folk books, including stories about the Schildburgers, were extremely popular. They read them aloud to everyone around them and to themselves, and looked at the engravings, although their quality was far from the best. And the word “Schildburger” became a household word.
But nevertheless, the first collection of fairy tales in Europe, apparently, should be considered “The Tale of Tales” (1634-1636), or “Pentameron”, by Giambattista Basile (published in 1575-1632), the frame in this collection was a tale about the misadventures of a princess Dzoza and the enchanted prince Tadeo.
In 1697, French fairy tales were published, adapted by Charles Perrault (1628-1703), which formed the collection “Stories or Tales of Bygone Times with Instructions,” which had the subtitle “Tales of Mother Goose.” And the friendly Perrault family often gathered for fairy tale evenings, during which the adventures of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, and Puss in Boots were retold.
The publication of the book of fairy tales by Charles Perrault and the popularity it gained prepared the French and indeed European readers for the perception of oriental fairy tales - the famous “One Thousand and One Nights”, which, by the way, was not a simple recording of fairy tales, but a grandiose collection of works folk literature. Published in 1703-1713 French translation this set in twelve volumes, completed by A. Gallan. This was not the first time a European reader met with the creation oriental literature, which was based on fairy tales: the Arabic version of the ancient Indian “Panchatantra” (III-IV centuries), known as “Kalila and Dimna”, was translated into Greek in 1081 and received the title “Stsphanit and Ikhnilat”. During the 13th-16th centuries, translations of the Arabic version appeared into Spanish, Latin, German and other European languages.
The nineteenth century was a century of great work in collecting fairy tales. First of all, it would be fair to mention the enormous merit of the famous German scientists the Brothers Grimm, who in the period from 1812 to 1822 published three volumes of German “Children's and Household Fairy Tales”. It was a collection that included two hundred fairy tales, not counting variations.
Note that one of the brothers, Jacob Grimm, subsequently highly appreciated scientific activity active collector of folklore of foreign Slavic peoples Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic (1787-1864), Serbian philologist, historian, ethnographer. Karadzic was the first to collect tales of these peoples.
Of course, now in all European countries there are numerous editions of collections of fairy tales.
There are centers for their study, and an “Encyclopedia of Fairy Tales” and indexes of fairy tale plots and motifs have been published.

Once upon a time there lived alone happy family: father, mother and their only daughter, whom her parents loved very much. They lived carefree and joyfully for many years.

Unfortunately, one autumn, when the girl was sixteen years old, her mother became seriously ill and died a week later. A deep sadness reigned in the house.

Two years have passed. The girl's father met a widow who had two daughters, and soon married her.

From day one, the stepmother hated her stepdaughter.

Tales of Gianni Rodari - The Adventures of Cipollino

Cipollino was the son of Cipollone. And he had seven brothers: Cipolletto, Cipollotto, Cipolloccia, Cipolluccia and so on - the most suitable names for an honest onion family. They were good people, I must say frankly, but they were just unlucky in life.

What can you do: where there are onions, there are tears.

Cipollone, his wife and sons lived in a wooden shack slightly larger than a garden seedling box. If rich people happened to find themselves in these places, they wrinkled their noses with displeasure and grumbled: “Ugh, he’s carrying onions!” - and ordered the coachman to go faster.

One day, the ruler of the country himself, Prince Lemon, was going to visit the poor outskirts. The courtiers were terribly worried whether the onion smell would hit His Highness's nose.

What will the prince say when he smells this poverty?

You can spray the poor with perfume! - suggested the Senior Chamberlain.

Fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm - Snow White

It was winter. Snowflakes fell like fluff from the sky, and the queen sat by the window with a black frame and sewed. She looked at the snow and pricked her finger with a needle, and three drops of blood fell onto the snow. The red drops on the white snow looked so beautiful that the queen thought to herself: “If only I had a child, white as this snow and ruddy as blood, with hair as black as the wood on the window frame!”

And the queen soon gave birth to a daughter, and she was white as snow, red as blood, and her hair was like ebony. And they called her Snow White. And when the child was born, the queen died.

A year later the king took another wife. She was beautiful, but proud and arrogant, and could not stand it when anyone surpassed her in beauty. She had a magic mirror, she often stood in front of it and asked:

- Who is the cutest in the world?

All blush and whiter?