Water Sprites (The Enchanted World Series)

Rating:
Summary: One of many greats in a great series
Review: It is impossible to own only one of the Enchanted World books, and this is a great addition or starting point for any collection. I loved the entire book; the pictures were great, as was the weaving of stories into the fantastical encyclopedia. The only thing that needs to be said is that it is a beautiful book.

Rating:
Summary: Beautifully illustrated mythology
Review: This book is one in Time Life Books' The Enchanted World series. Each of these books covers a different aspect of folklore and mythology, and they are an excellent set. They tell stories in a similar format and complement each other well without repeating the content. Each is about 140 pages.

This is a beautifully illustrated well printed volume. Artists include Alicia Austin, John Howe, Matt Mahurin, Julek Heller, Troy Howell and Arthur Rackham. Older depictions of water spirits are mixed in. These include work by John Waterhouse, Russel Flint, Walter Crane, Edward Dulac and Geraldine Anderson.

Stories are retold in a style that makes for a good read. These stories come from all over the world. Often there will be smaller illustrations and captions in the margins to the main story. These tell variations of the story and related stories from other cultures.

This is a beautifully bound and printed book. The binding is just cloth to collectors, but it is printed to look like a wizard's book. The cover shows a dragon holding a picture of a mermaid combing her hair. I think it was the cover that got me reading this when I was child.

Chapters:
Wellspring of the Universe: Scourges of the north
Daring the Sea-gods' Realm: Predators from the primal world
Wraiths of the Wind and Wave: Rendezvous with a death ship
Perilous Borderlands: A doomed alliance of earth and water

This is a well researched nicely produced series. For me one book in the series had me hooked. If you are interested in mythology and all things magic then it is definitely worth trying out the series. High school and middle school libraries should consider the series. Some books might cause issues since they are about the occult, but some like The Legend of Camelot book will be completely Kosher.