A collection of (mostly) original fairy tales:
"The Hundredth Dove" is about a man who values his word more than anything; I didn't agree with his decision.
"The Maiden Made of Fire" is about a man who falls in love with a creature made of fire.
"The Wind Cap" is about a man who receives a magic cap after saving a magical being.
"The White Seal Maid" is about a man who marries a selkie, although she is not referred to as such; her name, however, is Sel.
"The Promise" is about two children promised to each other and an evil sorcerer.
"Once a Good Man" is not original; it is about the difference between Heaven and Hell and George Shannon, for one, tells the story in one of his collection of Stories to Solve books with very long chopsticks and explains that it also appears without chopsticks in the Talmud. Unfortunately, Ms. Yolen makes no mention of the fact that the tale is borrowed.
"The Lady and the Merman" is about a very plain woman looking for love.
The stories are written poetically to give the feel of ancient tales; they don't have happy-ever-after endings, so they may feel more grownup, but as I get older, I come to appreciate happy endings.

This is an anthology of short stories. It’s the book that led to Jane Yolen being labelled as the Hans Christian Andersen of America. Out of the seven fairy tales contained in this book, 6 are originals with only Once a Good Man being a re-write of an old story. The book is lavishly illustrated and the cover art is superb. ( )