Ruth Manning-Sanders facts for kids

Ruth Manning-Sanders (born August 21, 1886 – died October 12, 1988) was a writer from Wales and England. She is famous for her many children's books where she shared fairy tales from around the world. She wrote over 90 books in her life!

About Ruth Manning-Sanders

Ruth Vernon Manning was the youngest of three sisters. Her father, John Manning, was a Unitarian minister (a type of religious leader). Ruth was born in Swansea, Wales. But her family moved to Cheshire, England, when she was three years old.

As a child, Ruth loved to read all sorts of books. She and her sisters even wrote and acted in their own plays! She said her childhood was "extraordinarily happy." She had kind parents and lots of freedom.

Ruth once shared a story in her book Scottish Folk Tales. She said she spent her summers at a farmhouse in the Scottish Highlands. This farm was called "Shian," which means "the place where fairies live." There, an old woman named Granny Stewart loved to tell stories, and Ruth loved to listen.

Life and Adventures

Ruth studied English literature and Shakespeare at Manchester University. In 1911, she married an artist named George Sanders. They both changed their last names to Manning-Sanders.

Early in their marriage, Ruth and George traveled all over Britain. They lived in a horse-drawn caravan and even worked in a circus! Ruth wrote many stories about her time with the circus. Later, the family moved to a small fishing village in Land's End, Cornwall. One of their two children, Joan, became a famous artist when she was a teenager in the 1920s.

Writing Fairy Tales

After World War II and her husband's death in 1953, Ruth Manning-Sanders started writing many fairy tale collections. Most of these were published in the 1960s and 1970s.

In her 1971 book, A Choice of Magic, she wrote about fairy tales. She believed there could be no new fairy tales. She felt they were stories from a very old time. She said that true magic stories are like a world with high walls. There is only one small door to enter this world: "once upon a time and never again." This means we can only visit these old stories.

Ruth often wrote introductions to her fairy tale books. These introductions talked about where the stories came from. For example, in A Book of Dragons, she included tales from Greece, China, Japan, Ireland, and other places. She even made sure to say that "not all dragons want to gobble up princesses." Her book showed kind dragons, proud dragons, and fierce ones too.

Ruth Manning-Sanders also believed that fairy tales should always have a good ending. In A Book of Witches, she wrote that even if witches seem scary, they are always defeated. She said it's a "very comforting rule" that good people are rewarded, and bad people get what they deserve.

She said the same thing in A Book of Princes and Princesses. Even though the stories came from many different countries, they all had one thing in common: a happy ending.

Ruth Manning-Sanders included both well-known and lesser-known tales. Some famous characters in her books include Baba Yaga, Jack the Giant-Killer, Anansi, Snow White, Hansel and Gretel, Robin Hood, and Aladdin. People praised her books for being witty and well-written.

Ruth Manning-Sanders passed away in 1988 in Penzance, England. Many hope her wonderful collections of folk tales will continue to be published for new generations to enjoy.

Ruth's Books

Many of Ruth's children's fairy tale books had beautiful drawings by Robin Jacques. He loved illustrating imaginative books because they gave him more freedom. He said his work with Ruth Manning-Sanders was very satisfying. They created 25 books together! Other artists also illustrated her fairy tales, including Raymond Briggs and Victor Ambrus.

Ruth's books were published by many companies around the world. Some of these include E. P. Dutton, Heinemann, and Oxford University Press.

She also wrote a novel called The Golden Ball. A Novel of the Circus (1954). This book was inspired by her time working with Rosaire's Circus in England. It even had parts that seemed like the life of a famous circus performer named Leon LaRoche.

Before she became famous for fairy tales, Ruth was also a poet and novelist. Some of her early poetry books were published by the Hogarth Press. This was a special publishing house run by Leonard Woolf and Virginia Woolf.

One of her short stories, "The Goblins at the Bath House," was even read by the famous actor Vincent Price on a record in 1978!

Selected Books

The "A Book of..." Series

These 22 collections were published by Methuen (and Dutton in the US). Most of them were illustrated by Robin Jacques.

• A Book of Giants, 1962
• A Book of Dwarfs, 1963
• A Book of Dragons, 1964
• A Book of Witches, 1965
• A Book of Wizards, 1966
• A Book of Mermaids, 1967
• A Book of Ghosts and Goblins, 1968
• A Book of Princes and Princesses, 1969
• A Book of Devils and Demons, 1970
• A Book of Charms and Changelings, 1971
• A Book of Ogres and Trolls, 1972
• A Book of Sorcerers and Spells, 1973
• A Book of Magic Animals, 1974
• A Book of Monsters, 1975
• A Book of Enchantments and Curses, 1976
• A Book of Kings and Queens, 1977
• A Book of Marvels and Magic, 1978
• A Book of Spooks and Spectres, 1979
• A Book of Cats and Creatures, 1981
• A Book of Heroes and Heroines, 1982
• A Book of Magic Adventures, 1983
• A Book of Magic Horses, 1984

Other Books

• The Pedlar, 1919 (poetry)
• The Twelve Saints, 1926
• Waste Corner, 1927
• Selina Pennaluna, 1927
• Hucca's Moor, 1929
• The Crochet Woman, 1930
• The Growing Trees, 1931
• She Was Sophia, 1932
• Run Away, 1934
• Mermaid's Mirror, 1935
• The Girl Who Made an Angel, 1936
• Children by the Sea, 1938 (also called Adventure May Be Anywhere)
• Elephant The Romance of Laura, 1938
• Luke's Circus, 1939
• Mystery at Penmarth, 1941
• Mr. Portal's Little Lions, 1952
• The Golden Ball A Novel of the Circus, 1954
• Melissa, 1957
• Peter and the Piskies Cornish Folk and Fairy Tales, 1958
• A Bundle of Ballads, 1959
• Circus Boy, 1960
• Red Indian Folk and Fairy Tales, 1960
• Animal Stories, 1961
• Birds, Beasts, and Fishes, 1962 (she edited this book of animal poetry)
• The Smugglers, 1962
• The Red King and the Witch Gypsy Folk and Fairy Tales, 1964
• Damian and the Dragon Modern Greek Folk-Tales, 1965
• The Crow's Nest, 1965
• Slippery Shiney, 1965
• The Magic Squid, 1968
• Stories from the English and Scottish Ballads, 1968
• The Glass Man and the Golden Bird Hungarian Folk and Fairy Tales, 1968
• Jonnikin and the Flying Basket French Folk and Fairy Tales, 1969
• The Spaniards Are Coming!, 1969
• Gianni and the Ogre, 1970
• A Book of Magical Beasts, 1970 (she edited this book)
• A Choice of Magic, 1971
• The Three Witch Maidens, 1972
• Festivals, 1973
• Stumpy A Russian Tale, 1974
• Grandad and the Magic Barrel, 1974
• Old Dog Sirko A Ukrainian Tale, 1974
• Sir Green Hat and the Wizard, 1974
• Tortoise Tales, 1974
• Ram and Goat, 1974
• Young Gabby Goose, 1975
• Scottish Folk Tales, 1976
• Fox Tales, 1976
• The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse Aesop's Fable Retold, 1977
• Robin Hood and Little John, 1977
• Old Witch Boneyleg, 1978
• The Cock and the Fox , 1978
• Boastful Rabbit, 1978
• Folk and Fairy Tales, 1978
• The Haunted Castle, 1979
• Robin Hood and the Gold Arrow, 1979
• Oh Really, Rabbit!, 1980
• Hedgehog and Puppy Dog, 1982
• Tales of Magic and Mystery, 1985
• A Cauldron of Witches, 1988