Scottish Folk-Tales and Legends

Oxford Myths and Legends

by Barbara Ker Wilson, Joan Kiddell-Monroe (Illustrator)

The magic of the stories in this book is very powerful, and in the hands of a master storyteller they have the freshness of stories told for the first time. There are traditional tales of great beauty, such as "Tam Lin" and "MacCodrum of the Seals"; exciting adventures--"The Adventures of Iain
Direach" and "The Ailp King's Children"; and shrewd, simple fables like "The Fox" and "The Little Bannock", all of which will delight small children.

Genres: Mythology, Fantasy, Scotland, Folklore, Short Stories, Childrens, Fairy Tales

220 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1954

About the author

Barbara Ker Wilson was born on 24 September 1929 in Sunderland, in the north of England. In 1964 she immigrated to Australia, living first in Adelaide, then Melbourne, then Sydney. She settled in Leura, in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney.

As a child she used to accompany her father to a large publishing office in London, to deliver corrected proofs of his latest engineering textbook, and she knew then that she wanted to work in the world of writing and publishing.
Her first 'successful' work, written when she was eight, was a play based on the coronation of King George VI; it was performed at her primary school in England.

The Second World War influenced her greatly, particularly the experience of living through air raids in London. With the end of the war came her first experience of travelling abroad; afterwards, she traveled extensively in Europe and Asia.

Winner of the Dromkeen Medal (1999).

Reviews

[Marei · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining and with more giants than anticipated.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun little read for those interested in the flavor of Celtic myth and legend. The best stories are toward the end of the book, in my opinion, those being the "Tales From The Episode Of The Fians", but I also appreciated little ditties like "The Fox and the Little Bannock", wherein not just animals but even things like loaves of bread and household implements become animated and take their place and have their voice in the story. Most interested readers will surely find something within these pages to amuse and delight them.

[Deirdre · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in a ploy to help me go to sleep at night when I had anxiety and couldn't turn my mind off, so I really don't remember much of it other than that it was enjoyable. Sorry, Barbara Ker Wilson.

[Danielle Woolard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these stories are very good and some are not so good. My favorites are MacCodrum of the Seals, The Good Housewife and her Night Helpers, and The Prince and the Giant's Daughter.

I really appreciate that there's a map to show where each story takes place.

[Jonathan Spencer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wilson's collection contains stories from around the country. I picked it up just before heading to Skye and was delighted to find stories mentioning the creation of the castles in the area.

[Rebecca Foweraker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting folktales from Scotland. A great read over the holidays.