Yolen is an American author of fiction, poetry, and plays for children and young adults, and a critic, essayist, and editor. Regarded as an outstanding prose stylist, she is perhaps best known for her literary folk and fairy tales. In these works Yolen combines familiar stories with modern twists or creates original stories which are reminiscent of the classic tales in structure and feeling. She often writes metaphorically using symbols and allusions, and believes strongly in the value of folklore to shape one's awareness of language, art, and culture.

Yolen's work is characterized by a diversity of subject matter and style. She frequently writes tales of transformation, a beast becomes human or a human a beast, and stories about youthful detectives set in present and future times. While much of her writing utilizes with and puns, the struggle between opposing moral forces displays itself in numerous folk tales...