This is the first of two volumes, so rich are the story-mining seams taken from just the few Irish collections I have in my possession at the moment. These first stories have been taken from around one hundred and forty Irish tales, themselves taken from pretty well every tradition, including classic tales of Irish legend, fairy and folk beliefs, and tales in the vernacular, oral tradition.
For the most part these tales are as collected by Victorian and Edwardian enthusiasts, but there are one or two tales where I have amended the original to suit modern language tastes and norms.
There are also a few stories that clearly share a common root, and appear similar at first reading, but there always seem to be sufficient and interesting differences to keep the reader’s attention.
I hope you enjoy this ever-growing collection from a grand British and Irish heritage. These Irish tales have taken a lot of work to collect and sift and prepare, but as ever, I’ve loved putting this collection together.
