A novelist, poet, literary critic and anthropologist, Andrew Lang is best known for his publications on folklore, mythology and religion; many have grown up with the 'colour' Fairy Books which he compiled between 1889 and 1910. This three volume set presents a selection of his work in these areas. As a companion to the first volume, the second is comprised of various case studies made by Lang, ranging from 'The Aryan Races of Peru' and 'The Folk-lore of France' to 'Irish Fairies' and 'The Ballads, Scottish and English'.

Collectively, the General Introduction to the set and the Introductions to the individual volumes offer a thorough overview of Lang's work in an astonishing variety of fields, including his translation work on Homer and his contributions to historiography (particularly Scottish). Headnotes to the individual items are of varying length and provide more detail on specific topics, and explanatory notes supply unique intellectual comment rather than merely factual information.