We often hear about the noble prince who rescues the poor king's daughter from the clutches of her pestilent stepmother, of course after he has passed all kinds of tests. Kingdoms, beautiful princesses, subjects: the main prize for demanding adventures, so that young minds should fall asleep peacefully and emulate their heroes. These old-fashioned clichés are now being done away with! And what else is there? The fact that today anyone can become "king" and even try to do so often results in a trail of destruction, in line with modern moralism. The fairy tales collected in this volume deal with these and similar problems.