LITTLE PEOPLE (Book Recommendation; Faeries / Little Folk?)

[Anonymous]

Can anyone recommend a good book that provides a synopsis of the faerie/little folk phenomena? ive seen the new agey ones full of drawings of entities portayed unquestioningly as real but would like to read a book that provides more info on the various theories behind them and perhaps reports of more modern encounters, also if anyone knows how to change their user name please tell me as im stuck with this string of characters for some reason , thanks for your help in advance. Martin Einon

 

[PeniG]

You might have trouble digging up her books, but you really can't do better than read Katherine Briggs on the topic of the fairies. The Fairies in Tradition and Literature was issued in paperback in 2002 and you might be able to track down the indispensable Encyclopedia of Fairies (1978) through Abebooks or some other good used book source. Amazon US claims to have it, but they claim a lot of things. For fiction based firmly in the folk tradition, also read her Hobberdy Dick! The Secret Commonwealth, by Robert Kirk, also has an American hardback edition as recent as 2006, edited by Marina Warner, who is no slouch of a folklorist herself.

I'm afraid I don't know of any nonfolklorist-mediated modern fairy account compilations that aren't more or less annoyingly New Age. Good luck with that one.

 

[Timble2]

Not a summary, but as near as you'll get to a primary source.

The Secret Commonwealth of Elves, Fauns and Fairies, by Robert Kirk is available here http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/sce/

It's in the original 17th century spelling and I prefer this vesion to the version with the modernised spelling

 

[Kellydandodi]

Tom Magowan and Victor Ambrus' 'the Hamlyn Book of Legendary Creatures' is a charming source of information on 'little people', even if the non-European creatures tend to be mis-nomed (or mis-gnomed).
Its out of print but usually can be found on ebay or amazon for under a tenner. Like the Hamlyn Book Of Horror - another fortean bible for post punk babies - it is a thing of gauche beauty.

 

[Graylien]

W Evans Wentz's The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries is well worth a read. You can find it online at
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/ffcc/index.htm

I downloaded a PDF version of it free somewhere quite recently, but I can't find it again now. Anyhow, I've uploaded the file here:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/i5k08h

Also, I think Janet and Colin Bord's Fairies: Real Encounters With Little People is supposed to be a good overview of modern fairy sightings, although I've never read it myself. (See also this.)

Nancy Arrowsmith's A Field Guide to the Little People is also worth a look for an overview of the many varieties of little folk. I doubt if it's still in print - my rather tatty copy came from Oxfam.

Anything by Katherine Briggs is worth grabbing. I'm afraid Marina Warner makes my toes curl, though.

 

[Eponastill]

'Visions, apparitions and alien visitors' by Hilary Evans is good. I know it hasn't got fairies int he title, but it makes links between different types of phenomena.. and fairies are maybe old school aliens.

(I'm not sure you CAN change your name. I thought I was stuck with my stupid one, when they changed the forums round. Hmm.)

 

[jefflovestone]

I know it's not what you're looking for in terms of text, but I still find the 1st Froud book a really beautiful read.

 

[Peripart]

If anyone knows how to change their user name please tell me as im stuck with this string of characters for some reason , thanks for your help in advance. Martin Einon

Presumably you got given that name when you registered for a competition of some kind? That's the explanation I've heard before for all these "gcd" names. If you're thinking of sticking around these boards (and please do!), it might be worth sending a PM to a Moderator before too long, to see if they can sort you out. At the worst, you might be able to re-register under a new name before you have made too many posts under the old one.

Mind you, I picked my name on the spur of the moment, never thinking that my posts would reach double fgures, and here I am still stuck with it!

 

[TheQuixote]

At the worst, you might be able to re-register under a new name before you have made too many posts under the old one.

That's pretty much it. IIRC the gcd_ usernames are people who have taken out a subscription to the mag.

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If you want to register again with a new username - it would be best to use a different email address - send me a private message with the details of the username & email addy that you've signed up with. I can activate the new account and then deactivate the current one you're using.