Enchanted World Series

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The Enchanted World Series of books, were a set of twenty one books released in the 1980s. Each book focused on different aspects of mythology and were edited by Time Life Books.^[1] They were known for their beautiful art and the extensive research used in their stories. A unique part of the series was that its books were written as stories, taking place from an "in the universe" perspective, presenting its subjects as real people, places, and things. Another common thread through several of them was its documenation of the alleged decline of magical things from "when the world was young" to the modern day. The subject--dragons, dwarves, giants--are presented as being potent and strong at the dawn of time but as humans spread and demistify the world, magical creatures grow weaker and eventually disappear, though there is always the promise that the magic will return once again.

[edit] The Series

In order of publication:

Wizards and Witches
Dragons
Fairies and Elves
Ghosts
Legends of Valour
Night Creatures
Water Spirits
Magical Beasts
Dwarfs (actual spelling used on book - this is the proper spelling - "dwarves" comes from Tolkien, and was an intentional change of spelling)
Spells and Bindings
Giants and Ogres
Seekers and Saviours
Fabled Lands
Book of Christmas
Fall of Camelot
Magical Justice
Lore of Love
Tales of Terror
Book of Beginnings
The Secret Arts
Gods and Goddesses