Gillian Avery, novelist and historian of children's books, has compiled this collection of her favourite poems. Her choice of over 250 pieces range from ballads to Ted Hughes, from Ben Jonson to Noel Coward.

For this collection of seven traditional tales, Gillian Avery has provided a retelling of the texts which complements Bilibin's illustrations, which are themselves rooted in the stylized forms of Russian folk and medieval art.