Yei Theodora Ozaki wanted to put an end to the notion of the Japanese woman as an oppressed, passive geisha-like Madame Butterfly figure. She said, "When I was last in England and Europe, very mistaken notions about Japan and especially about its women existed generally." This collection is the outcome of a suggestion made by Andrew Lang. The tales have been translated from a version written by Sadanami Sanjin. The stories are not literal translations though the Japanese story and all quaint expressions have been faithfully preserved. They are told more with the view to interest young readers of the West than the technical student of folklore. This book includes the original illustrations by Kazuko Fujiyama as published in 1908 and a glossary of olden and grown up terms added by Richard S. Bailey.