Myths & Legends

REPRINT. The figure of the 'wise woman', the 'hag', or the 'Red Woman' are part of an oral tradition which has its roots in pre-Christian Ireland. This title explores these figures to reveal how they offered a complex understanding of the world, of human psychology and its predicaments. It brings to the fore universal themes such as death and marriage.

‘There was a wise woman, we’re all agreed, some call her Brigid, some call her Bríd. She grew up kind and she liked a joke and she always wore a wee small cloak.’

What is your best defense against a phosphorescent land sheerie? Can you really find contentment with a wealthy merrow wife? The answers are disclosed at last in A Field Guide to Irish Fairies, the first and only such guide available.

Just what is a leprechaun? To some, he is full of harmless mischief, guarding his elusive crock of gold. To others, an evil gnome bent on disrupting mortal lives with black magic. Historian & folklorist Bob Curran turns the spotlight on the 'real' leprechaun - mysterious, complex and contradictory.

A unique insight into the fascinating overlap between witch belief and the vast range of fairy lore that held sway for many centuries throughout the land.