Hans Christian Andersen is one of the world's most popular storytellers, and his fairy tales are among the best-loved works of literature. Readers the world over know his poignant tale of "The Little Mermaid," who sacrifices everything for love, and "The Steadfast Tin Soldier," whose affection for a paper ballerina is symbolized by his transformation into a small tin heart. Several of Andersen's stories are so well-known—among them "The Emperor's New Clothes" and "The Ugly Duckling"—that their titles alone have become meaningful figures of speech.

Hans Christian Andersen: Best-Loved Fairy Tales collects one hundred of Andersen's incomparable fairy tales and stories, among them "Thumbelina," "The Little Match Girl," "The Princess and the Pea," "The Red Shoes," "The Wild Swans," and his fantasy masterpiece "The Snow-Queen." This volume is beautifully illustrated with more than one hundred drawings by Dugald Stewart Walker and Hans Tegner, two of Andersen's best-known illustrators.