"In the grand tradition of newly translated and illustrated collections of fairy tales, we present this collection of "lost" German fairy tales by Franz Xaver von Schonwerth, translated by Canadian Shelley Tanaka and illustrated by local artist Willow Dawson. From the Guardian, March 2012: "A whole new world of magic animals, brave young princes and evil witches has come to light with the discovery of 500 new fairytales, which were locked away in an archive in Regensburg, Germany for over 150 years. The tales are part of a collection of myths, legends and fairytales, gathered by the local historian Franz Xaver von Schonwerth (1810-1886) in the Bavarian region of Oberpfalz at about the same time as the Grimm brothers were collecting the fairytales that have since charmed adults and children around the world." Unlike his contemporaries, the Grimm Brothers, who edited and polished the tales they collected, von Schonwerth, a linguist, left his untouched. His books subsequently languished and were lost to time ... until now."-- Provided by publisher.