A Book of Fairies

by Katharine M. Briggs

A whimsical, fun, blank, lined journal for you to create and let your imagination roam.

Genres: Folklore, Fairies, Nonfiction, Magic

211 pages, Paperback

First published October 30, 1997

About the author

Early Life Katharine Briggs was born in Hampstead, London in 1898, and was the eldest of three sisters. The Briggs family, originally from Yorkshire, had built up a fortune in the 18th and 19th centuries through coal mining and owned a large colliery in Normanton, West Yorkshire. With such enormous wealth, Katharine and her family were able to live in luxury with little need to work. Briggs's father Ernest was often unwell and divided his time between leafy Hampstead and the clear air of Scotland. He was a watercolourist and would often take his children with him when he went to paint the landscape. An imaginative storyteller, he loved to tell his children tales and legends; these would have a great impact on the young Katharine, becoming her passion in later life. When Briggs was 12 her father had Dalbeathie House built in Perthshire and the family moved permanently to Scotland; however, tragedy struck when he died two years later. Briggs and her two sisters, Winifred and Elspeth, developed a close bond with their mother, Mary, after this - all living together for almost fifty years. As Briggs and her sisters grew older their main passion was for amateur dramatics. They wrote and performed their own plays at their home and Briggs would pursue her interest in theatre throughout her education. After leaving school she attended Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University, graduating with a BA in 1918 and an MA in 1926. She specialised in the study of traditional folk tales and 17th-century English history.

The Folklorist Briggs continued her studies largely as a hobby, while living with her sisters and mother in Burford, Oxfordshire. She collected together traditional stories from across the country and the wider world, but did not publish them yet. Together she and her sisters performed in plays with local amateur dramatics groups and Briggs wrote historical novels set during the Civil War (also unpublished). When the Second World War started Briggs joined the WAAF and later taught at a school for the children of Polish refugees. After the war Briggs threw herself into her folklore studies, completing her PhD on the use of folklore in 17th-century literature. In 1954, the first Katharine Briggs book was published, titled The Personnel of Fairyland, a guide to the folklore of Great Britain. This was followed by Hobberdy Dick (1955), a children's story about a hobgoblin in Puritan England. Though these books brought a small amount of interest, it was not until the 1960s and 1970s, following the deaths of her sisters and mother, that Briggs became a renowned folklorist. In 1963 she published another children's book, Kate Crackernuts, and became involved with the Folklore Society of the UK, later being elected as its president in 1967. Now a preeminent expert on fairy stories and folklore, she began to lecture across the country and by the 1970s she had been invited to give lectures in the United States and was regularly interviewed on television. In 1971 she published her masterpiece, the four-volume A Dictionary of Folk-Tales in the English Language. This work remains the definitive collection of British folk stories, becoming a vital resource for writers, academics and storytellers. Katharine Briggs died suddenly at the age of 82 on 15th October 1980. At the time of her death she had been working on a memoir of her childhood days in Scotland and Hampstead, where her love of folklore began.

Information taken from http://www.foliosociety.com/author/ka...

Reviews

[Tatiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've decided to be generous and forgive the blatant error about the Isle of Man's 'black dogs' which she calls 'Mauthe Doog'. The correct term is 'Moddey Dhoo', and not even pronounced in a similar way to her spelling. This should have been corrected in editing, but considering how early on it way I nearly lost all hope for the correctness and accuracy of the rest of the book, but from my own research around the subjects of the book this was the only major error I could find.

That said, the book is a miniature treasure trove of information, and is excellent for introducing new folklore to the curious. The essays chosen were very brief but informative, and even though they were dry they were concise and easy to read.

It took me a while to get passed the errors about Manx folklore that I grew up learning, but I realise that they are not well known elsewhere in the world. On the one hand it could have been easily double checked, on the other it was nice to see our Island's culture being included as it is often neglected in books such as this.

[Reem · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love all of Katharine Briggs’ books, but this one hardly does her justice. It is a brief compilation of articles, stories, and poems about fairies, and provides a very basic introduction to the study of fairy lore. It contains a few short essays on the basic issues that scholars studying folklore often research (the origin of fairy beliefs, time in Fairyland, protection against fairy charms, Changelings, etc.) and of the rest of the book consists of tales, poems, and recorded sightings of fairies in the British Isles from medieval times up until as recently as the late 1800s. All the material in this book is taken from Ms. Briggs’ most famous work, "A Dictionary of Fairies," which provides more sightings and folk tales along with references and a comprehensive bibliography, which this book unfortunately lacks.

This is by no means a book of children's fairy tales. Don't expect to find stories about tiny, cute fairies dressed in pink tutus and tiaras that fly about waving magic wands. It is a shame that this is how popular culture depicts them today so that they appeal to children. Some of the tales and sightings in this book can be dark, frightening, and even tragic. Only a few offer happy endings. I do not recommend this book for small children.

Katherine Briggs' work is meant for scholarly research and explores the fairy beliefs of various cultures, but mostly from the British Isles. Unlike today's sickly sweet fairies, these vary in their physical appearances and demeanor: They could be tall and fair or diminutive and ugly. They could be kind and helpful towards mortals or bitter, jealous, and mischievous. What is fascinating is that the belief in fairies was prevalent up until the 19th century and was a part of everyday life. However, as people became more educated, the belief in them diminished and a lot of the tales and the origins of these tales faded away.

I loved the diversity of tales, poems, and sightings and that they were taken from different corners of the UK. It was interesting to note the similarities and differences in the sightings. You’ll even find that some of the tales have similar plots to fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm! The book is perfect for people who wish to begin their journey into the scholarly study of fairy lore or anyone interested in fairies and folk tales in general. It is compact (about the length and width of a person's hand) and light, making it convenient and portable. You could store it in a purse or even the pocket of a sweater or jacket if it is wide enough.

I didn’t like that the book lacks any references, making it difficult for the newbie student of fairy lore to continue his/her education without some (or a lot of) Internet research. I wish the section of essays contained more from the "Dictionary of Fairies" to give more information on fairy behavior and taboos. I also would have like to see more illustrations taken from the Dictionary to embellish some of the tales and poems.

Although I enjoyed “A Book of Fairies,” It was merely an okay introduction to the study of fairy lore. It is a good place to start and you can find used copies on Amazon, eBay, ABE books, Biblio, or other similar websites for acceptable prices. However, I recommend purchasing the “Dictionary of Fairies” if you are looking for more information and references.

[Adam Stevenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A small primer of fairy lore. Varied enough to be interesting and brief enough to not outstay its welcome. There is a certain repetition to stories of fairies (and indeed fairy stories) and I reached the end, feeling like I had a good handle on them.