Folktales of Ireland

by Sean O'Sullivan (Editor)

Few Countries can boast such a plentitude of traditional folktales as Ireland. In 1935, the creation of The Irish Folklore Commission set in motion the first organized efforts of assembling and studying a multitude of folktales, both written as well as those of the Irish oral tradition and has collected well over a million pages of manuscripts. Folktales of Ireland offers chief archivist Sean O'Sullivan's representation of this volume. These tales represent the first English language compilation of Gaelic folktales.

Genres: Folklore, Mythology, Ireland, Fairy Tales, Short Stories, Fiction, Irish Literature

365 pages, Hardcover

First published December 31, 1966

Reviews

[Padraic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Essential for anyone interested in Ireland's 2000 year old unbroken chain of myths and tales. If you can just shut up for a moment, you will hear the dead speak, and sounding as lively as ever.

[Dakota Glaser · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Folktales of Ireland"

Rating: 2 stars

I really wanted to like this; I just tend not to be able to force myself to do that. I got this from my school library, and those books tend to be either a hit or miss. This one just happened to be a miss. I was reading about Scottish history, and I was like, "Hey, Ireland is a lot like Scotland,d, right?" No, it's not. But aside from the fact that I was going in blind, I don't think the stories were long enough for me to actually get into them. Which is, by all means, not the author's fault. I just feel as if the folktales were a little longer. I'd enjoy them more. I wouldn't recommend this, but if you're good with short stories, then I'd highly recommend you read this.

[Andrea Quigley Maynard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This dense book of folktales from Ireland gave me a clearer picture of the storytelling culture of Ireland which was why I was reading it. It took me several months to get through it - many of the stories are short, but it's the type of book where you leave on your nightstand and read a few pages each night! Stories cover many different genres, warriors, witchcraft, the other world, faeries and more. I really enjoyed the introduction to the stories which explains the intricate ways these stories were captured. A treasure for anyone interested in Irish history and culture.

[Glenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

These are very like Grimm’s Fairy Tales, but Irish. The introduction to my edition even says as much. The divisions into genre type were helpful. And I loved the way the stories sounded like someone telling a story aloud rather than writing it. It gives them an intimacy to hear the personality of a narrator come through. Even the introduction about how the tales came to be recorded was interesting for those who enjoy history/anthropology. Looking forward to making this a re-read as much as the book of Grimm’s Fairy Tales I grew up reading.

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adored the book - no surprise really considering that my favourite book series is based on Irish folklore. I sure hope to read more of it soon and own the book at well, since this time I got it from the library.

[Barbara Wellnitz · Rating 2 out of 5]

It seemed to me all the tales had the same theme so after about 50 pages, I gave up.

[Anna Bosman · Rating 3 out of 5]

These folktales are very human and, well, folky. They will never satisfy a modern reader in search of "Celtic mysticism". Fortunately, I'm not that reader, and I never were. These tales are to be enjoyed for the grey stones of Ireland, the green hills of Ireland and the blue sea of Ireland. There's so much sea I feel like sailing.

[Susanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

55 short stories. This book makes a great bedtime storybook. Highly recommended.