Welcome the newest addition to John Cech’s widely-praised Classic Fairy Tale Collection.Every day, twelve princesses mysteriously wear out twelve new pairs of shoes—and neither the king, nor a series of hopeful suitors, can figure out how. Then a simple soldier, with a little magic on his side, gives it a try. Will he succeed where others have failed? Lucy Corvino’s illustrations capture the princesses’ graceful dancing world.

What a special Christmas gift this will be: the beloved holiday fantasy, beautifully retold by John Cech (author of our Classic Fairy Tale series) and illustrated by Eric Puybaret, whose imaginative art helped turn Puff, the Magic Dragon into a blockbuster. Cech bases his version on E.T.A. Hoffman’s original, which features not only the story familiar to all ballet lovers, but other wondrous adventures—including the tale of Princess Pirlipat and an explanation of the orig...

I am Jeshua, son of Maryam, son of Joseph, and a son of God. My journey began in the dry lands by the Western Sea And it led me to hidden places in the mountains of the East. Every life is a book, and if we do not write it down, Surely it will blow away, like dust in the wind, and The memory of all the acts that mark our lives and paths in the world will disappear. If you find this, my book, and if you read its words, May they be a map that leads you to that hidden land, To that fragrant v...