Andrew Lang was an Oxford fellow and Scotsman who had a distinguished career as a poet, novelist and historian. His wife Leonora was extremely well-educated herself, having translated a history of Russia from the French and written several other books of her own. However, they are both remembered best for their series of 12 fairy tale books--beginning with the Blue Fairy Book in 1889 and ending with the Lilac Fairy Book in 1910. These quickly became the most popular gift books of all time and remained so for several decades. It was Andrew Lang's interest in anthropology that led him to collect and publish these folk tales from far-flung lands, most of which were unknown to English readers at the time. And though all of them were published in Andrew's name, his role was largely editorial--a great deal of the translating, adapting and rewriting was done by his wife Leonora and others.

This husband and wife team next applied their highly successful formula for choosing, researching and adapting folk tales to the stories of the saints, creating The Book of Saints and Heroes in 1912, with a result that is both inspiring and fun to read. Add the illustrations by H.J. Ford, whose creations illuminated the Fairy Books, and you have a book which makes an ideal gift for any child.