[1] Their overall editor was Ellen Phillips and their primary consultant was Tristram Potter Coffin, a Guggenheim Fellowship Award-winning University of Pennsylvania Professor Emeritus of English.
Half of Legends of Valor is about them, and they appear in Wizards and Witches, Fairies and Elves, Dwarfs, Spells and Bindings and Giants and Ogres.
The volumes in the series were known for their art and the extensive research used by their respective authors retold stories, and were executed as gold imprinted, cloth bound hardcover books, with a glued-on cover illustration.
[2] Despite the universal appeal of the subject matter, the series has not been widely translated into other languages, though French, German, and Dutch-language editions are known to have been near-concurrently released by the local "Time-Life Books B.V." Amsterdam branch.
The same branch was also responsible for the similarly released French, German and UK English-language editions, of which the latter were also intended for all territories outside the USA/Canada and indistinguishable from the US source publications, save for their ISBNs and the use of the British versus the American spelling.
Unlike their Dutch counterpart, the French and German-language series editions were completed in their entirety as Les mondes enchantés and Verzauberte Welten ("Enchanted Worlds" – plural in both cases) respectively.
Contrary to the French and Dutch editions though, which only saw one print run each, but like in the USA, the series was a popular one in the German-speaking territories (Germany having been the birthplace of the Brothers Grimm after all, having their folk tales featured heavily in the Time-Life release in edited form), enjoying multiple reprints; of the first title, "Zauberer und Hexen", for example, is known that there have been at least five printings.
The first concerned the 1995 second-edition German-language hardcover without a dust jacket release, licensed to Augsburg-based publisher Weltbild Verlag [de], carrying the series title Die geheimnisvolle Welt der Mythen und Sagen ("The mysterious world of myths and sagas") and featuring deviant cover art.
Moscow-based publisher Terra followed suit one year later with a licensed Russian-language first edition, entitled Зачарованный мир ("Zacharovannyĭ mir"), a literal translation of the series title.
Since reality was fluid, it was relatively easy for mighty wizards such as Finland's Väinämöinen, Taliesin, Manannán mac Lir, Math the Ancient and Gwydion to cast their magic.
Lehane closes that as time marched on and witches retreated from humankind, their magic was forgotten and relegated to stories for scaring children.
Regardless of the good intentions of men like Carantoc, however, peaceful coexistence between man and dragon was almost impossible as the tale of Saint Martha and Tarasque shows.
In detailing the life of Cuchulain, Lehane writes that in the early world, tribes needed champions to protect them and lead them in battle.
The life of Irish hero Cuchulain is retold, and with it, how while there were other men of the Red Branch, he proved himself the greatest champion of Conchobar mac Nessa, King of Ulster.
Cuchulain, the son of Lugh fought bravely for his king and became a warrior without peer, although he was killed by Maeve who tricked him into breaking his various vows or geis.
Leading men milder and more civilized, but just as valiant, High King Cormac Mac Art and his Fianna protected Ireland from invasion.
Despite the Christian kingdom of Camelot being at peace, such men were needed as giants, dragons, and witches made Britain a place of wonder and danger.
In searching for the Holy Grail, the Knights of the Round Table did prove themselves the very best heroes of all times but the loss of so many good men in the quest crippled Camelot and left it vulnerable to decay from within.
Following is an excerpt: "Within this hall, hearths and torches blazed warm and bright, and drinking horns passed freely among the warriors of the Scylding clan; bards intoned the praises of their chieftain, Hrothgar, the valorous King; harpists sang of warmth and light.
Water was hailed as the source of life; the Hindus worshipped the Ganges under the name of Ganga, Mimir's well gave Odin his wisdom, the Nile and the Jordan River built civilizations, and everywhere people sought the Fountain of Youth.
On the contrary, the kinder Ea came from the calmer Persian Gulf to teach men civilization and agriculture whilst the consistently cruel Rán ruled the volatile North Sea.
Its cousins included China's ki-lin and the Persian karkadann which, unlike their European counterpart, respectively embodied only gentility or ferocity.
While some of them might be recent dwarf refugees from the outside world, some of them might have always lived there, "awaiting the day when their earth-shaping skills will once again dazzle mortals and gods alike".
It cites the legends of Og, Orion, Cronus, and Ymir, and shows that in those earliest of days, giants were indeed wielders of incredible size and strength.
Such fears are mentioned in tales of animal and even human sacrifice meant to appease the pagan gods such as Odin in hopes of surviving winter.
Christmas was a time filled with old magic when animals could talk and nature spirits abounded, but followers of the new religion saw nothing strange in keeping their ancestors' pagan traditions alive.
Lehane states: "In the Child born at Bethlehem, they had the promise of spring in the heart of midwinter, the divine gift of a bright, cleansing flame to drive away the dark".
After the spell was complete, Merlin told all that his act of casting magic had alerted the Old Ones who were now looking at and paying attention to King Arthur and his court.
That first book came additionally with a free bonus gift in the form of a set of gypsy fortune telling cards, which became a collectible in its own right in recent years.
"Seekers and Saviours" is the final book in my collection, sadly, and I feel an ache in my heart knowing there will be no more reviews of Enchanted World publications".