Fairy Folklore

by Anna Franklin, Paul Mason

There are legends of fairies all over the world, mysterious creatures who live apart from the race of mankind but who are sometimes seen in wild and lonely places. Some are large and some are small, some are good and some are evil. Many are solitary beings living alone to guard a well, a hill, a tree, or a lake. Some aristocratic fairies gather together in large bands to form a fairy court. The world of the fairy sometimes impinges on that of mankind. Their kingdoms appear and disappear. Usually fairies are only seen in the blinking of an eye, though there are tales of humans who have spent extended periods with them, or feasting and dancing with them for what seems to be a night, only to find that many years have passed in the human world. Human men and women have occasionally become the lovers of a fairy, but this relationship always has conditions and taboos imposed on it, and should the fairy lover leave for any reason - usually because of the breaking of a taboo - then the human will pine away and die. Anna Franklin shares the folklore of fairies in this book, exploring their myths and origins.

86 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 16, 2011

Reviews

[Steve Cran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ever question yourself as to what faeries look like? Most of you think of Tinkerbell but in reality many of them do not have wings and most of them look like dwarves and can be considered very unattractive. Most of the fey are size of young children which is about three feet. females are dressed in green while the men are dressed in red. There are several groups of faeries, aristocracy faeries appear in groups while regular faeries come individually. Aristocratic faeries tend to be larger and human size and tened to be more attractive.

Not everybody is able to see faeries. It is said that those born with the second sight can perceive faeries. To get this second sight usually it is given as a gift to the human by a faery. Of course not all of those with the second sight get it as a gift. If you are part faery then you will have second sight. People who are born in the night time tend to have it also. Those not having sometimes make ointments that help them see. However, it is best not to let the faeries know that you see them they are not to nice about it.

It is said that faeries live in faery mound and old ruins. Some say they even live in burial mounds. It is thought then that they live under ground in continuous day light.Some faeries live in trees and others like mermaid and selkies live in the water. Different faerie kingdoms have different rules about letting humans in. Some do it on the condition that nothing is taken while others let humans in with no conditions. Most will not let humans in.

Faeries seem to like breadhoney and milk.Other people say they sip nectar from flowers. Faeries also take toradh or substance from food but leave behind it's physical form. When visiting the land of the fey do not eat the food. To eat their food means that you can never return to the land of the living. Another opinion suggests that one will pine away thinking of the faery land. Sometimes faeries like to play tricks on people and what appears to be delicious food turns out to be nothing but leave or poison.

Elf arrow or dart can cause illness and or death. If you capture an elf bolt you can use it to ward off faery illness. Farm animals could be shot by elf bolts as well. Ussually a wise woman was called in to help with faery illness. Faeries get mad when the proper tithe is not left. their retaliation could be milking the cows dry, killing farm animals, stealing them and sucking the spiritual substance dry from crops and other foods.

For the money this book is an excellent buy. You can buy the amazon kindle for about 99 cents. I learned a few new things about faeries as well. The chapter on faery plants is exhaustive and thorough. There are no spells in this book but just general over all knowledge. In one chapter there are strategies for combating faery glamour and tricks. Items like iron, horse shoes and flax seeds can keep bad faeries out.

Changeling is another thing to watch out for. Faeries will take a child and replace the human with one of their own or a wooden replica. Magic makes you think it is real. A series of brutal test can determine if the baby is a faerie changleing. Once discovered the baby will flee and the original child will bee returned.

Let it be known that faeries do enjoy marrying humans and have been known to kidnap brides. They keep the bride for 7 years in which time she ages considerably. When the seven years are complete she is then returned but blessed with magic. Usually human faery marriages do not last forever. Such conditions as yelling at a faery or inadvertantly hitting them or breaking your word and revealing them wil cause them to leave. If you are the unlucky lover yuou will pine away thinking about them.

There is discussion about the origin of faeries. Some people think they were an ancient but small people who were pushed aside by larger people. Still others feel they are nature spirits or elemental spirits. They might even be former gods.

Interesting little book that will provide for a quick read. Hope you enjoy it.

[Benjamin Barnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Research Material

This is an Interesting book and was very well researched. It is a little encyclopedic in Nature. It teaches a great about Faeries.