Fairy Tales, like many important myths that date back to the ancient Greeks, are often grounded in real-life situations that are meant to teach important life lessons. In short, both Fairy Tales and popular myths are very important for developing a sense of story telling and understanding recurring themes in literature. Many well-known Fairy Tales are much darker than the modern Disney versions of the same because they were meant to be cautionary tales for the young. That said, I would encourage children to read the classic fairy tales as well as the most popular myths. I'd also recommend that children read and discuss these stories with an adult (parent, relative, or guardian), so they can take away the most important themes presented in these stories.
