The Swan Maidens

A fairy tale retold from Europa's Fairy Book, by Joseph Jacobs

This fairy tale comes from Europa's Fairy Book, published in 1916 by the folklorist Joseph Jacobs, who collected stories from across Europe. The swan maiden is a very old story pattern found in many cultures: a magical woman is trapped by a man who hides her magical clothing. The hunter in this tale must go on a long quest to win back the trust and love he lost. It is a story about keeping promises, respecting others, and the hard work of setting things right.

Band

Yellow · Emerging readers, about 6 to 8

Length

medium · about 588 words in 6 sections · 4 pictures

Source

Europa's Fairy Book, Joseph Jacobs · Project Gutenberg

First published

see the About page in the reader

Regions

Canada · United States

Included formats

• · Web reader and PDF
• · EPUB for e-readers
• · Home-print sheet
• · Folded booklet
• · Binder edition (8.5 × 11)
• · Worksheet
• · Quick Check (8 questions) with answer key
• · Read-aloud script
• · Colouring page

Readers are engineered from the original public-domain text with AI under HummingRead’s published canon and Content Philosophy, checked by automated audit and sampled by a person. Pictures are made with AI to HummingRead’s brief for each story. How a reader is made.