Charles Perrault‘s 388th birthday is today and Google has commemorated it with a series of three beautifully-illustrated Doodles. Perrault is the author of several beloved fairy tales and was born January 12, 1628. He’s also known as the “father of the fairy tale.”

Many of the tales Perrault wrote aren’t like those you know today. Like the work of the Brothers Grimm, the stories have more explicit details than those in simple children’s books of today and were intended as moral stories. Many fairy tales were told by peasant storytellers for years, and authors such as Perrault would collect them and retell them for the upper-class. The author was also an advisor in Louis XIV’s court, and the ruler considered the fairy tales just as vital as any other form of literature. Perrault would take these often-told stories, and rewrite them, adding in more elaborate and magical elements making them grand adventures for Louis XIV and the populace.  Reading his work, it’s hard to imagine that Perrault wrote The Tales of Mother Goose, his fairy tale collection, when he was in his 70’s! The collection was published shortly before his death.

The Google Doodles have been lovingly created by Sophie Diao, with one for each his three most popular stories: Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty and Puss in Boots. You can read those stories and plenty more by Perrault here at Fairytalez.com.

6 Things You Might Not Know About Charles Perrault

Charles Perrault is the author of some of the most beloved fairy tales, but did you know these facts?

• He dropped out of school but continued home-study, reading the classics
• Walt Disney and Perrault were inspired by the same castle known as The Chateau d’Usse – Walt Disney used it as the basis of Disneyland’s Sleeping Beauty Castle, while Perrault used it as a reference to write the story of Sleeping Beauty
• The first book of stories was published under his son’s name because he was unsure as to how it would be received
• Charles Perrault’s story Little Red Riding Hood has an estimated 50 versions from around the world
• He was originally trained as a lawyer, but had a passion for writing
• Perrault advised Louis XIV to create thirty-nine fountains featuring the animals of Aesop Fables

Want to know more? You can read more about Charles Perrault and the fairy tales of the French, at our website! Find all of his tale below: