Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends

by Claire Fayers

Enjoy Wales's rich heritage of myth and fairy tales, re-told for young readers. From magical Welsh dragons that destroy a castle night after night, to a princess made out of flowers and a fairy changeling bother; from loyal hunting hound Gelert, to a boy who asks questions and goes on to become the greatest Welsh bard ever known... This book includes traditional favourites and classic myths and legends from Welsh folklore.

Genres: Mythology, Fairy Tales, Fantasy, Fiction, Folklore, Short Stories

168 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 4, 2021

About the author

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Claire Fayers writes comic fantasy featuring swashbuckling pirates, evil magicians, heroic librarians and man-eating penguins. She grew up in South Wales, studied English in Canterbury, and is now back in Wales where she spends a lot of her free time tramping around castles in the rain, looking for dragons.

Reviews

[Omiai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful retelling of some gorgeous Welsh stories. These are my first real look at Welsh fairy tales, myths and legends, and I was not disappointed!
Not only are the stories told in an interesting, captivating way, but they are not over complicated or dull (I've read retellings of other myths etc that have been so boring, it lost all the sparkle that could have been there, making an exciting story unreadable).
I also loved that there is a mini guide to Welsh pronunciation, along with a guide to specific names and place names within the book, so you can easily work out how to say them. I was always flipping back to check it, as I wanted to make sure I was getting it correct.
All in all, a wonderful little book. I wish I'd had this as a kid, but I'm really glad I have it now!

[Kaitlyn Bancroft · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book in Cardigan, Wales and read it out loud to my friends as we drove across the Welsh countryside. What an utterly delightful way to spend an afternoon — driving through a gorgeous country while reading the stories that helped shape its people. These fairytales were definitely modernized and geared towards children, and there were a few minor editing issues, but as an introduction to lore that we were largely unfamiliar with, this was lovely. I bought the Irish and Scottish fairytale books in this series at another Wales stop, and my friends and I are excited to read more as we continue exploring the U.K.

[Sofia (Dauntless) · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great and cozy collection of myths and fairy tales, much more accessible than some other Welsh tales I've previously read. The tone is light and pedagogical, but never overly childish, so fits all ages. I appreciate the short introduction with background information for each new story, as well as the pronunciation guide.
I bought this book while in Wales, which admittedly makes it all the more magical for me.

[Filip Olšovský · Rating 3 out of 5]

A comprehensible introduction to the most famous myths, lacking any artistic ambition and great as a guide for every traveller wanting to know more about the stories shaping this beautiful country.

[katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely read for a holiday in South Wales

[Txell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the way the stories were written, and the edition is beautiful !

[Gabriella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really enjoyed some of these tales! I've only heard of one of them before from my school days, which never fails to make me tear up; Gelert the Brave/Gelert Ddewr.

I was really enjoying the stories but about 1/5 of the way through the book I started becoming super aware of grammar, punctuation or spelling mistakes. Was even more disappointed when the last story was going so well, I was in the moment and then a misspelling of a singular word threw me off haha. I am just being particular though.

Gwion Bach was an interesting character. A quote from page 87, The Boy Who Asked Questions/Y Bachgen a Ofynnodd Gwestiynau, "How was he supposed to learn anything if people wouldn't answer his questions?"

Page 117 also had a pretty quote from the story The Fairy Harp/Telyn y Tylwyth Teg, "The sound made him think of green forests and rushing water and birds soaring high over mountains."

Taliesin Saves the Day/Taliesin Yn Achub Y Dydd has to be my favourite from the collection! It was magical, heart warming and quite funny too.

[Irene vH · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

A fun dive into Welsh culture, this book of fairytales, myths and legends is a nice way to get some insights into a country I know very little about.

the stories are short but very entertainingly written. Modernizing the language to make them easier to follow. The Welsh pronunciation guide was a nice extra, even though still hard to remember. And I very much appreciated that each story got an introduction providing info on what has been changed and where one can find the original.

So overall a nice, short and lighthearted book telling us stories, some of which might have familiar elements.

[Cara (Wilde Book Garden) · Rating 5 out of 5]

CW: Grief, animal death, violence

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very accessible and easy to read, quick stories that keep you engaged. Would definitely recommend

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gift card | Sweet versions for children, hampered by some editing issues (Siôn becomes Sean, that sort of thing). These are Disney-fied, which I always have mixed feelings about, but plenty of parents would appreciate these lighter versions.

[🌶 peppersocks 🧦 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reflections and lessons learned/the content of this book made me feel…

…that I may find some of these hard to follow/swallow, but that none of us should ever dismiss these passed down shared stories. I read one out loud to my son in the garden sun which then led to the 11 year old neighbour coming round to listen and tell us an Irish legend that he’d recently learned from a blended family holiday to a members homeland. Oral history and local nods - imagination and stories that make people feel a part of the rooted history. I shall now be passing this book on to my Welsh dwelling parents to join the continuing spread of the stories ❤️

[Rachael Day · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved reading the old folk tales of my heritage. The stories are captivating and offer a glimpse into Welsh culture and traditions. This book is a treasure trove of enchanting tales that I can pass on to my children if I have any. Highly recommended for anyone interested in folklore.

[Chloe Fellows · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bought this from a bookshop in Cardiff 8 months ago and has taken me that long to actually finish it lol. Was actually super interesting and I love fairytales and myths. Now I need to go back to Wales and explore the places in this book.

[Tessa Vliet · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice collection of easy to read short stories. I would have liked to see a little more detail.

[Rhi · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice book for younger children, making Welsh folk stories more accessible to them.

[Cat Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wonderful little book full of Welsh folklore and stories. They took me back to my Welsh lessons in school. I found the writing simple and easy to read. A cute reading experience ☺️

[Manouk · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cozy retelling of Welsh stories

[Jenna · Rating 5 out of 5]

An utterly fantastic collection of Welsh stories.

[Rose English · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love it when a book inspires me to research more stories

What an enjoyable read. Such delightful tales. I totally agree with the author, when she says in the introduction that when in Wales "wherever you tread, you are stepping on stories".

I was familiar with some of the stories in this book and I have read several tales of the Tylwyth Teg the naughty fairy folk who steal children, quite shocking when most people think of fairies as being good.

There are several favourites here but my favourite of all was 'The Boy Who Asked Questions' what a great story I even downloaded a copy of the frequently mentioned 'Mabinogion' translated by Lady Charlotte Guest mid 1800s I wanted to read her version of the aforementioned called 'Taliesin'.

'Gelert the Brave' and 'Devils Bridge' both featuring dogs were also favourites. A collection well worth checking out.

[Noah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a really fun and easy to read book! I adore myths & fairy tales and it was very interesting to read about them.

[Joanne van der Vlies · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Wales is full of legends and you never know when you might stumble into one..."

[James Cooper · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun and entertaining read that I would recommend. Each story follows a child protagonist and is a rendition of traditional welsh tales and myths. They are suited to a children’s audience and the writing/formatting is in line being a little simplistic and lacking that much depth. But for what it is and what Fayers set out I think it was done well. It’s a shame to not be getting a higher rating but all nineteen stories averaged out to 3.092 stars so that’s what it’ll have to be, some were better then others and there weren’t any I particularly disliked but personally a bit mid. It’s a nice book, one that might’ve been better coming back to instead of reading many in one sitting and I’d be interested to explore more of such tales in a longer format and elsewhere as similar versions are available for Scottish and Welsh tales. What I did find useful and important was a guide to pronunciation and character/place names at the start.

[Bonny · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book serves as a great introduction to welsh folklore. The text is very accessible and entertaining, would be a great collection of tales to read as bed time stories.
I had recently read the Mabinogion however so found that some of the retelling of stories from that lacked a lot of depth. That statement in and of itself isn’t a negative criticism. There’s some parts of the Mabinogion that I found to be clunky and thankfully they were streamlined in the retellings here. The issue with the retelling was the inconsistency in omission. By which I mean details were sometimes mentioned either without the set up or pay off that is found in the Mabinogion.
I also found with my copy several spelling errors.

[Amber van Kampen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice story’s with some really interesting facts about some places! I only have to mention that’s more a book for, let say… bedtime story’s or so😂 That moment when you watched something cruel on Netflix and you want to get something innocent in your mind to fall asleep peacefully 🥰 I red it all in one in the warm days and I totally liked it! It can be a bit tiring because it’s around every 10 pages a new story so that’s not making it really suitable for a long read :)

I recommend the book if you are interested in mythes, legends and very tales! Also very nice to read it for your kid or to use for inspiration for drawing or creating art work!

[Elo Wood · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars ✨

I had a lot of nostalgia for my primary school days reading this book. My favourite, as it always has been, was Gelert the Brave. The version in this book is pretty decent!

I’m sure if i had read this as a child I would have had much more appreciation for it! It does a good job of introducing Welsh fairytales (myths & legends) to young, non-Welsh, readers. However, having grown up with many of these stories, some of them felt lacking in a way? Could be due to the fact that i was first told these stories by family or in school with pretty good narration, and so my first association is hard to beat.

[Vanesa Bejarano Alegre · Rating 3 out of 5]

[Book] "Welsh Fairy Tales, Myths & Legends" is a charming and easy-to-read book. I enjoyed most of the stories, though towards the end, some felt too simple, which made me take longer to finish it. I think it’s a great book for schools and children in general, as it presents Welsh myths and legends in an accessible way.

While not all the stories fascinated me, some truly stood out—especially those with a historical background, like the one about the dragon on the Welsh flag and the tale of the loyal dog. Others, though interesting, felt more common and less memorable. Overall, it's a good collection of traditional tales, perfect for those who want to explore Welsh mythology and folklore.

[M.T. Lynx · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this book - the tales are great.
Really love it when fairy tales are not all "happy endings" but include cleverness as a staple for getting out of a sticky situation all good.
Appreciate the foreword on each tale, giving a bit of history and some of the welsh translations. Also thoroughly like when the author covers the fact that some tales may have multiple endings.
Faves are Gelert the Brave, Flower Face, and King Arthur's Cave, with the Three Calves as a distant fourth.
Fabulous collection - a must read!

[Rhian Lester · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having grown up in rural Wales I was aware of some of these tales, in fact I remember doing an adaptation of one as a school play in primary school! Others were new to me. These versions may have been adapted for children’s stories but I enjoyed them nonetheless! I would love to read more stories, myths and fairy tales for wales. I have also noticed similar books from Ireland and Scotland that I would like to read.

[Seren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun little stories that would be fabulous for children. I bought the book as an adult trying to get an introduction into Welsh fairytales, it was a brief introduction and it’s written in very plain simple language and the stories aren’t long at all - so if you are getting into reading, dyslexic, or younger, this will be good for you. For me? I enjoyed it enough and did help me with familiarising myself with Welsh folklore, even though it’s not very detailed, it’s a good starting point.