'This Is how it all began ... ' From 'A Necklace of Raindrops' to 'The Patchwork Quilt', here are eight classic stories to treasure and enjoy. Beginning and ending with a birthday, this spell-binding collection conjures up a world filled with magic, where wishes can come true. A necklace of raindrops that keeps its owner dry in the heaviest rainstorm, a tiger that runs faster than the wind, a huge floating apple pie with a piece of sky in it, a baker's cat who swells to the size of a whale when his mistress feeds him yeast, a house that stands on one leg – these are just some of the objects and characters that figure in these delightful stories.