The Fairy Books, or "Coloured" Fairy Books is a collection of fairy tales divided into twelve books, each associated with a different colour. Collected together by Andrew Lang, they are sourced from a number of different countries and were translated by Lang's wife and other translators who also retold many of the tales. The collection has been incalculably important and, although he did not source the stories himself direct from the oral tradition he can make claim to the first English translation of many. First published in 1889, The Blue Fairy Book is the 1st volume in this series.