The King of Hummingbirds and Other Tales

This 19th-century-style children’s storybook contains four original fairy tales: “The King of the Hummingbirds,” “The Witch’s Wish,” “The Pear Tree,” and “The Gnome and the Dragon.” The stories feature an idiotic coppersmith’s son who unexpectedly becomes the ruler of the birds, an unhappy witch who wants a career change, a kind and faithful boy who wishes to marry royalty, and a gnome with strange and disorienting powers.

Unlike many fairy-tale collections based on traditional folklore, these stories were written by author John Gardner. Intended for readers ages eight and up, the book uses fantasy and humor to convey a moral within each story. It was published by Random House and features full-page illustrations and a dust jacket designed and illustrated by Michael Sporn.

The book follows a traditional typographic format: Each story opens with a title page set in a decorative serif typeface featuring curved forms and ornamental flourishes. The body text uses a simpler serif typeface, with each story beginning with a large, bold initial capital. The large type and generous spacing make the text accessible to young readers.

Sporn’s ink illustrations complement the typography and help convey the stories visually. The cover illustration is printed in color, while the interior illustrations appear in black and white. Together, the typography, illustrations, and traditional book format create a nostalgic children’s-book aesthetic representative of its period.

Writer: John Gardener

Illustrator: Michael Sporn

Publisher: Random House

Date: 1977, exact date unknown

Location: New York, USA

Object type: Storybook

Format: Hardcover Storybook

Featured: Four Fairytale Stories, “The King of the Hummingbirds”, “The Witch's Wish”, “The Pear Tree”, and “The Gnome and the Dragon”.

Language: English

Item held by: 
Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library
University of Georgia Special Collections Libraries