In legends from China, Canada, and more, women of all ages prove they're more than capable of saving the day.

The feminist folktales collected in Sea Girl upend any notion that women are doomed to be sentimental, meek, or submissive. In these classic tales, heroines unflinchingly wade monstrous rivers, escape ogres’ nests, and outsmart desperate sharks and hungry tigers. And while defending their families and villages, they always determine their own fate.