The Girl Who Would Be King and Other Romanian Fairy Tales

Book excerpt: Four spellbinding fairy tales from 19th century Romania, translated into English and adapted for a contemporary audience. A girl disguises her gender to rescue her father’s kingdom from the clutches of a tyrannical invader. But while learning to pass as a man, she draws the attention of a young maiden of legendary beauty, and a whole new world starts opening up… Delight in the twists and turns of The Girl Who Would Be King, a transgender fairy tale originally told in 19th century Romania. Three additional Romanian fairy tales introduce you to a whole range of magical characters and exhilarating adventures. Petre Ispirescu was born in 1830 in Bucharest and grew up around Romanian fairy tales. He trained at a publishing house and later used his position to publish several collections of fairy tales. A few of these tales are still part of the literature curriculum in Romania to this day, and they are slowly but surely making their way into the rest of the world.