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the Tale of Taliesin
Take a little parsley, a touch of ivy, lots of garlic, and a few other ingredients, boil them together in a huge cauldron for a year and a day, and you have the perfect spell. What spell? One to make the stupid wise and one that Ceridwen the witch uses for her ugly, obnoxious and thoroughly unpleasant son in the hopes of turning him into the world's wisest wizard, a man so skilled that he will be accepted into the court of any king.
Unfortunately for Ceridwen, things do not go according to plan and the benefits of the bubbling brew fall on Gwion. Fleeing Ceridwen's wrath, Gwion turns into a seed, only to be eaten by the enraged witch. Nine months later, Taliesin is born, wisest of the wise and an adept poet and trickster. He is soon called upon to prove his skills in the court of King Maelgwn. And then the fun really begins...
Following their success with Tales from the Mabinogion, distinguished authors Gwyn Thomas and Kevin Crossley-Holland have produced a masterful retelling of a popular story from Welsh folklore. Margaret Jones's illustrations romp through the pages and capture the riotous humour of the text. Here is a book which will instantly appeal to children and adults alike.
Unfortunately for Ceridwen, things do not go according to plan and the benefits of the bubbling brew fall on Gwion. Fleeing Ceridwen's wrath, Gwion turns into a seed, only to be eaten by the enraged witch. Nine months later, Taliesin is born, wisest of the wise and an adept poet and trickster. He is soon called upon to prove his skills in the court of King Maelgwn. And then the fun really begins...
Following their success with Tales from the Mabinogion, distinguished authors Gwyn Thomas and Kevin Crossley-Holland have produced a masterful retelling of a popular story from Welsh folklore. Margaret Jones's illustrations romp through the pages and capture the riotous humour of the text. Here is a book which will instantly appeal to children and adults alike.
62 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1992
1 person is currently reading
38 people want to read
About the author
Gwyn Thomas
119 books8 followersProfessor Gwyn Thomas (1936-2016) was a Welsh poet, academic and a former National Poet for Wales.
Raised in Tanygrisiau and Blaenau Ffestiniog, Thomas was educated at Ysgol Sir Ffestiniog, University of Wales, Bangor and Jesus College, Oxford; Prof Thomas is presently Emeritus Professor of Welsh at Bangor University.
Gwyn Thomas published 16 volumes of poetry, several volumes of work as a literary and cultural critic and has also translated the Mabinogion into English. Prof Thomas's first work as a poet Chwerwder yn y Ffynhonnau ("Bitterness in the Fountains") was published in 1962, while his latest Apocalups Yfory ("Apocalypse Tomorrow") was published in 2005.
Prof Thomas was also a literary and cultural critic and has published several volumes of essays, critiques, adaptations and translations, including the classic Y Traddodiad Barddol – a study of the classic poetic tradition of Wales. Prof Thomas is also involved with the film industry in Wales, and has helped pioneer techniques to combine poetry and film.
In 2006, published his autobiography, entitled Bywyd Bach.
Also in 2006, Thomas was appointed National Poet for Wales by the Academi, replacing Wales first national poet Gwyneth Lewis. Thomas said he would use the 12 month appointment to draw attention to the work of Welsh poets.
Thomas has provided the words for many inspiration books and recently added his touch to an inspirational photographic book entitled Blaenau Ffestiniog.
Raised in Tanygrisiau and Blaenau Ffestiniog, Thomas was educated at Ysgol Sir Ffestiniog, University of Wales, Bangor and Jesus College, Oxford; Prof Thomas is presently Emeritus Professor of Welsh at Bangor University.
Gwyn Thomas published 16 volumes of poetry, several volumes of work as a literary and cultural critic and has also translated the Mabinogion into English. Prof Thomas's first work as a poet Chwerwder yn y Ffynhonnau ("Bitterness in the Fountains") was published in 1962, while his latest Apocalups Yfory ("Apocalypse Tomorrow") was published in 2005.
Prof Thomas was also a literary and cultural critic and has published several volumes of essays, critiques, adaptations and translations, including the classic Y Traddodiad Barddol – a study of the classic poetic tradition of Wales. Prof Thomas is also involved with the film industry in Wales, and has helped pioneer techniques to combine poetry and film.
In 2006, published his autobiography, entitled Bywyd Bach.
Also in 2006, Thomas was appointed National Poet for Wales by the Academi, replacing Wales first national poet Gwyneth Lewis. Thomas said he would use the 12 month appointment to draw attention to the work of Welsh poets.
Thomas has provided the words for many inspiration books and recently added his touch to an inspirational photographic book entitled Blaenau Ffestiniog.
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April 12, 2017
The whole point of reading traditional folk and fairy tales (in my opinion) is not only to discover things about previous cultures, but also for the sheer entertainment value that stems from the ridiculous aspects of some of the stories. The birth and early years of Taliesin, a bardic character from Welsh history and lore, is a classic example of both of these themes since it combines interesting observations about Welsh society and provides many opportunities for raised eyebrows. I won't go into a lot of detail about the story itself, since the myths are nothing a reader in the tradition can't find elsewhere, but I found this retelling to be very readable even if the illustrations were rather underwhelming.
Displaying 1 of 1 review