Three children discover an old country estate during their school holidays. When they're exploring it they come upon a mysterious young girl claiming to be a fairy princess. She shows them the castle's treasure, including a ring that will turn you invisible. But no one is more surprised than she when she slips it on her finger ... and disappears! The ring is indeed magical, and the children waste no time finding out what else it can do.

Edith Nesbit was one of the most prolific and beloved children's authors of her time, but she also had a more literary bent, as evinced in The Rainbow and the Rose, one of several of the collections of poetry she penned in her lifetime. This compendium of verse tackles topics ranging from the quotidian to the profound in a traditional rhyming style that will please poetry purists.

From the book:

The writings of Shakespeare have been justly termed "the richest, the purest, the fairest, that genius uninspired ever penned." Shakespeare instructed by delighting. His plays alone (leaving mere science out of the question), contain more actual wisdom than the whole body of English learning. He is the teacher of all good - pity, generosity, true courage, love. His bright wit is cut out "into little stars." His solid masses of