Sources
Everything under Classics is a retelling. We start from a story that is in the public domain, then write it again in new words for a reader of ten to twelve. We never reproduce the original text, so a retelling is not a substitute for the real thing — where we can, we point you at a free edition of the original.
The rule we check against
A story qualifies only if it was first published in 1930 or earlier and its author died in 1955 or earlier. Both tests have to pass, because copyright terms differ between the United States, the European Union, and Indonesia, and we publish to all three at once.
Editions come from sources that are themselves free to use, such as Project Gutenberg and Standard Ebooks. We do not take text from scans on the Internet Archive, whose terms limit their collections to scholarship and research.
Every classic on the site
- Chang'e and the Cold Bright Castle
- Richard Wilhelm (d. 1930), first published 1921. Source: Richard Wilhelm, "The Lady of the Moon". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 29939 — The Chinese Fairy Book (1921), edited by Richard Wilhelm (d. 1930); the printed book credits Frederick H. Martens as translator, whose dates are unverified, and the PG metadata credits no translator — plot reference only. Public domain because editor died 1930; first published 1921 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia; the translation is not relied upon. Checked 2026-10-27. The translator cannot be verified, so nothing comes from any English edition; the retelling works from the tale's outline. Both tellings of Chang'e's reason are recorded above — choose one, do not blend them into a muddle.
- Sinbad and the Whale That Was an Island
- Andrew Lang (d. 1912), first published 1898. Source: Andrew Lang, "Sinbad the Sailor". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 128 — The Arabian Nights Entertainments (Longmans, Green and Co, 1918 printing of the 1898 edition); plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because editor died 1912; first published 1898 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-27. Lang's edition carries all seven voyages; the retelling keeps two so the whole thing fits one sitting. The 1918 date on the fetched printing is a reprint — the first edition is 1898.
- The Girl Who Fed the Gate
- William Ralston Shedden Ralston (d. 1889), first published 1872. Source: William Ralston Shedden Ralston, "The Baba Yaga". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 22373 — Russian Fairy Tales: A Choice Collection of Muscovite Folk-lore (New York: Hurst & Co., 1872); plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because translator died 1889; the fetched edition is 1872 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-27. Ralston's volume is a scholarly collection with comparative footnotes; those are research, not text. The 1872 Hurst edition is the one fetched, which is why the entry records 1872 where the older row in the sourcing list said 1873.
- The Sparrow Who Shared a Bowl
- Yei Theodora Ozaki (d. 1932), first published 1908. Source: Yei Theodora Ozaki, "The Tongue-Cut Sparrow". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 4018 — Japanese Fairy Tales (Tokio, 1908), translated by the author; plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because translator died 1932; first published 1908 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-27. Ozaki's version, like most Japanese tellings, has the wife cut the tongue. The retelling keeps the injury but not the image; the punishment is fright, not injury.
- Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp
- Andrew Lang (d. 1912), first published 1889. Source: Andrew Lang, "Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 503 — plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because author died 1912; first published 1889 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The tale was added to the Nights by Antoine Galland, who heard it from Hanna Diyab; this retelling follows Lang's 1889 English telling, the same treatment as East of the Sun and West of the Moon. No branded magician, no cave-of-wonders design, no songs.
- Morgiana and the Forty Thieves
- Andrew Lang (d. 1912), first published 1889. Source: Andrew Lang, "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 503 — plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because author died 1912; first published 1889 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The original ends with a body quartered and hung, and with Morgiana boiling the thieves in oil. Neither is on the page here: one is a disappearance and a burial, the other a discovery and a rout.
- The Rose and the Beast
- Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont (d. 1780), first published 1756. Source: Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont, "Beauty and the Beast". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 7074 — plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because author died 1780; first published 1756 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. Beaumont's 1756 telling in Magasin des enfants is the short one; Villeneuve's 1740 is much longer, with dream episodes. This draws its shape from Beaumont. No branded candlesticks, no teapots, no ballroom.
- Black Beauty's Quiet Journey
- Anna Sewell (d. 1878), first published 1877. Source: Anna Sewell, "Black Beauty". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 271 — plot reference only; retold from the novel. Public domain because author died 1878; first published 1877 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10.
- The Hazel Tree and the Golden Slipper
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Cinderella". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The first edition has the stepsisters cutting their feet to fit the slipper and being blinded by the birds; the retelling keeps the meanness and drops the mutilation. The glass slipper is Perrault's — Grimm's is gold. Disney's 1950 film is the branded adaptation: no glass slipper, no pumpkin, no mice, no fairy godmother.
- The Breadcrumb Trail
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Hansel and Gretel". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The witch's death and the stepmother's are not on the page: the oven door shuts and the children leave. Disney's 2020 film is one more adaptation; nothing of it is used.
- The Red Hood and the Wolf
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Little Red Riding Hood". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Perrault's 1697 telling is the first recorded literary version (PG #29021, verified above). Checked 2026-10-14. Perrault's version ends with the girl eaten and a moral attached; that ending is not used. The wolf's meal happens behind the door, not on the page. No branded hood, no song, no sidekick.
- The Girl in the Tower
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Rapunzel". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The retelling keeps the visits and the plan to leave, and nothing of what the first edition added about them. Disney's 2010 film is the branded adaptation: no long golden hair as a weapon, no chameleon, no tower climbing songs.
- The Miller's Daughter and the Little Man
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Rumpelstiltskin". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The original has him tear himself in two; he vanishes in a puff instead, and the queen keeps her child.
- The Sleeping Castle
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Sleeping Beauty". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Perrault's 1697 telling is the older literary version (PG #29021, verified above). Checked 2026-10-14. The version has the king burning every spindle in the kingdom, and earlier princes caught in the hedge; the retelling keeps the worry and drops the bones. Disney's 1959 film is the branded adaptation: no gown colour, no fairies named Flora, Fauna and Merryweather.
- Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "Snow White". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The 1812 text has the queen eat what she believes are the girl's lungs and liver, and dance to death in iron shoes. Both stay out of the retelling. Disney's 1937 film is the branded adaptation: no woodland animals doing housework, no mine song, no names for the dwarfs.
- The Emperor's Empty Coat
- Hans Christian Andersen (d. 1875), first published 1837. Source: Hans Christian Andersen, "The Emperor's New Clothes". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 1597 — plot reference only. The ebook credits no translator, so its English text is unverified at translator level; retell from the story, never from that prose.. Public domain because author died 1875; first published 1837 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The retelling dresses him in a suit only the foolish can see, and the child is the one who says so. Nothing of the 1930s or later animation is used.
- The Fox, the Cat, and the Boy Who Lied
- Carlo Collodi (d. 1890), first published 1883. Source: Carlo Collodi, "The Fox and the Cat". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 16865 — plot reference only. Its header credits no translator, so the English text is unverified at translator level; the retelling comes from the underlying story and nothing is drawn from that prose. PG 500 is not usable: its translator, Carol Della Chiesa, died in 1972.. Public domain because author died 1890; the novel was published in book form in 1883 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. The Italian novel is the work retold; no English translation is copied.. Checked 2026-10-10. Translation caveat: PG 500 (Carol Della Chiesa, d. 1972) is not clear under life+70 until 2043, and the alternative used here, PG 16865, credits no translator at all. So nothing comes from any English edition — the retelling is from the underlying 1883 story and its plot alone. Disney's 1940 film is the branded adaptation: avoid its designs and the characters it invented.
- The Promise at the Well
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "The Frog Prince". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. The first edition ends with the frog thrown at the wall; the retelling does not do that. No branded princess, no jazz, no beignets.
- The Red Petticoats
- E. Nesbit (d. 1924), first published 1906. Source: E. Nesbit, "The Red Petticoats". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 1874; Standard Ebooks — plot reference only; retold from the chapter. Public domain because author died 1924; first published 1906 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10.
- The Long Yellow Road
- L. Frank Baum (d. 1919), first published 1900. Source: L. Frank Baum, "The Road to the Emerald City". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 55; Standard Ebooks — plot reference only; retold from the novel. Only the 1900 book is cleared here.. Public domain because author died 1919; first published 1900 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10. The 1939 MGM film is a separate work still in US copyright, and the ruby slippers are a live word mark — use the 1900 book's silver shoes and nothing the film invented. Only the 1900 book was verified for this list; Baum's later Oz books also pass the date rule but were not checked, and sequels by other authors are out of scope.
- The Grey Bird
- Hans Christian Andersen (d. 1875), first published 1843. Source: Hans Christian Andersen, "The Ugly Duckling". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 1597 — plot reference only. The ebook credits no translator, so its English text is unverified at translator level; retell from the story, never from that prose.. Public domain because author died 1875; first published 1843 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. Disney's 1939 short is one more adaptation; nothing of it is used.
- The Girl in the Walnut Shell
- Hans Christian Andersen (d. 1875), first published 1835. Source: Hans Christian Andersen, "Thumbelina". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 1597 — plot reference only. The ebook credits no translator, so its English text is unverified at translator level; retell from the story, never from that prose.. Public domain because author died 1875; first published 1835 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-14. Every marriage before the last one is a bargain made by somebody else; the retelling keeps that as the thing she is escaping. The swallow is a friend, not a love interest.
- The Snow Queen
- Hans Christian Andersen (d. 1875), first published 1844. Source: Hans Christian Andersen, "The Snow Queen". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 1597 — plot reference only. The ebook credits no translator, so its English text is unverified at translator level; retell from the story, never from that prose.. Public domain because author died 1875; first published 1844 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10. Long in the original; the retelling must compress to one sitting without turning it into a chase sequence.
- The Four Old Friends
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1819. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "The Bremen Town Musicians". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1819 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10.
- The Fisherman and His Wife
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "The Fisherman and His Wife". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — used as a plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10.
- The Three Spinning Women
- Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm (d. 1863), first published 1812. Source: Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, "The Three Spinning Women". Edition used: Project Gutenberg ebook 19068, translated by Lucy Crane (d. 1882) — plot reference only; retold from the story. Public domain because authors died 1863 and 1859; first published 1812 — clear in the US, EU and Indonesia. Checked 2026-10-10.
Cover images
Cover illustrations are generated for WishingTales and are not taken from any published edition. They are not the work of the original illustrators, and they do not reproduce trademarked character designs.
Corrections
If a source record here is wrong, we want to know. Write to [email protected] and we will fix it or pull the story.