A Wonder-Book for Girls and Boys

Six legends of Greek mythology, retold for children by Nathaniel Hawthorne, with illustrations by Arthur Rackham

In 1838, Hawthorne suggested to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that they collaborate on a story for children based on the legend of the Pandora’s Box, but this never materialized. He wrote A Wonder Book between April and July 1851, adapting six legends most freely from Charles Anton’s A Classical Dictionary (1842). He set out deliberately to “modernize” the stories, freeing them from what he called “cold moonshine” and using a romantic, readable style that was criticized by adults but proved universally popular with children.

Included are “The Gorgon’s Head,” “The Golden Touch,” “The Paradise of Children,” “The Three Golden Apples,” “The Miraculous Pitcher,” and “The Chimaera,” with full-color illustrations throughout by Arthur Rackham.