Twenty Two Goblins

Twenty Two Goblins is an ancient Indian folk tale similar to One Thousand and One Nights. In this story a king is asked to retrieve a dead body from a goblin's tree. In the process, the king captures the goblin and is told a series of stories. Each story end in a riddle, which the king must answer correctly. The stories are similar to other ancient folk/fairy tales. There is love at first sight, magical worlds, princesses, kings, magic, etc. Some stories are light hearted while others are darker. Each corresponds to a cultural or religious belief (OF THAT TIME). The son should give his life for his father, the servant must support his king, the woman must be faithful to her lover, etc.

There are some antiquated beliefs in this story that would not be appropriate for children (speaking specifically of a story that features self sacrifice of a 7 year old). Instead I would recommend this book for a college course on ancient Indian cultures, or ancient folk tales.

The story is available via the public domain here.