Once upon a time, in a far country, there lived a King whose daughter was the prettiest princess in the world. Her eyes were like the cornflower, her hair was sweeter than the hyacinth, and her throat made the swan look dusty. 

And so begins James Thurber's unusual fairy tale. The stories of the journalist-cartoonist are deceptively simple and charming in style yet unflinchingly clear-sighted in their appraisal of human foibles.

James Grover Thurber was an American cartoonist, writer, humorist, journalist, and playwright. He was best known for his cartoons and short stories, published mainly in The New Yorker and collected in his numerous books.