"Within a few minutes of this book arriving, I had put bookmarks in five places and was roaring through the index. A lovely compilation. It's the real macabre." —Terry Pratchett Scotland's rich past and varied landscape have inspired an extraordinary array of legends and beliefs, and many of the most intriguing are collected here: stories of heroes and bloody feuds; giants, fairies, and witches; and accounts of local customs and traditions. Their range extends across the country, from the Borders with their haunting ballads, via Glasgow, site of St. Mungo's miracles, to the fateful battlefield of Culloden, and finally to the Shetlands, home of the seal-people. More than simply retelling these stories, this collection explores their origins, showing how and when they arose and investigating what basis they have in historical fact. It uncovers the events that inspired Macbeth, probes the claim that Mary King’s Close is the most haunted street in Edinburgh, and examines the surprising truth behind the fame of the MacCrimmons, Skye's unsurpassed bagpipers. Moreover, it reveals how generations of Picts, Vikings, Celtic saints, and Presbyterian reformers shaped the myriad tales that still circulate. The result is a thrilling journey through Scotland's legendary past and an endlessly fascinating account of the traditions and beliefs that play such an important role in its heritage.

The Lore of Scotland: A Guide to Scottish Legends

History

Kingshill, Sophia

Westwood, Jennifer

Europe

Arrow

A rich, magnificent exploration of the folklore and mythology of the English and Irish coast
Pirates and smugglers, ghost ships and sea-serpents, fishermen's prayers and sailors' rituals—the coastline of the British Isles plays host to an astonishingly rich variety of local legends, customs, and superstitions. Here renowned folklorists Sophia Kingshill and Jennifer Westwood gather together the most enthralling tales and traditions, tracing their origins and examining the facts behind the legends. Was there ever such a beast as the monstrous Kraken? Did a Welsh prince discover America, centuries before Columbus? What happened to the missing crew of the Mary Celeste? Along the way, they recount the stories that are an integral part of Britain's coastal heritage, such as the tale of Drake's Drum, said to be heard when England was in peril, and the mythical island of Hy Brazil, which for centuries appeared on sea charts and maps to the west of Ireland. The result is an endlessly fascinating, often surprising journey through island history.

The Fabled Coast: Legends & Traditions from Around the Shores of Britain & Ireland

Where can you find the 'Devil's footprints'? What happened at the 'hangman's stone'? Did Sweeney Todd, the demon barber of Fleet Street, ever really exist? Where was King Arthur laid to rest? Bringing together tales of hauntings, highwaymen, family curses and lovers' leaps, this magnificent guide will take you on a magical journey through England's legendary past. 'A fascinating county-by county guidebook to the headless horsemen, bottomless pools, immured adulteresses and talking animals that make up the hidden landscape of the country.' - "London Review of Books". 'Evokes an England terrified by screaming skulls, tantalized by hidden treasure, spooked by the unearthly clanging of bells, bewitched by fairies and hobgoblins' - "Country Life". 'Wonderful...Contains almost every myth, legend and ghost story ever told in England' - Simon Hoggart, "Guardian".

Lore Of The Land: A Guide To Englands Legends From Spring Heeled Jack To The Witche

SIMPSON, Jacqueline

Reference

Penguin Uk

Watch out for a ghostly ship and its spectral crew off the coast of Cornwall. Listen for the unearthly tread and rustling silk dress of Darlington's Lady Jarratt. Shiver at the malevolent apparition of 50 Berkeley Square that no one survives seeing. England's past echoes with stories of unquiet spirits and hauntings, of headless highwaymen and grey ladies, indelible bloodstains, and ghastly premonitions. Here, county by county, are the nation's most fascinating supernatural tales and bone-chilling legends: from a ghostly army marching across Cumbria to the vanishing hitchhiker of Bluebell Hill, from the gruesome Man-Monkey of Shropshire to the phantom congregation who gather for a Sermon of the Dead. . .

Haunted England: The Penguin Book of Ghosts

Penguin

Albion : A Guide to Legendary Britain

Religion & Spirituality

Occult & Paranormal

Salem House

Gilgamesh,: & other Babylonian tales; (Heroic retellings from history and legend)

Ancient Civilizations

Bodley Head

Legends, folktales and traditions are set in the context of the individual locations from which they spring.The book details how the myths came into being, how they changed in the telling over generations, and how finally they came to form such an important part of Britain's heritage.

Albion Guide to Legendary Britain

Hunter Publishing+inc

The beautiful, vain, and selfish Star Child, raised by the woodcutters who found him in the forest, is turned into an ugly creature after he cruelly snubs his real mother, a begger woman

The Star Child: A Fairy Tale

French, Fiona

Wilde, Óscar

Children's Books

Atheneum

Lavishly illustrated with full-color photographs, an  entertaining guide leads readers through the twelve stages common to  all pilgrimages and the most-traveled routes, sites, temples,  landscapes, and shrines around the world, including Santiago de  Compostela, Angkor Wat in Cambodia, and Croagh Patrick in Ireland.  20,000 first printing.

Sacred Journeys: An Illustrated Guide To Pilgrimages Around The World

Travel

Diane Pub Co.

This is a comprehensive reference to the world of unexplained sites, symbols, cities and landscapes. An extensive guide, the book details 40 places and their particular mysteries. A six-page gazetteer at the end of the book includes a further 54 places of mystery throughout the world. Scattered over the planet are the curious ruins of cities, temples and tombs, puzzling earthworks and inscriptions on the land, sacred sites where civilizations have sought communion with the supernatural, and the remnants of lost lands with a proud and prosperous past. The world's unexplained places have intrigued and fascinated man. From the legends of Atlantis and Eldorado, to the Nasca lines of Peru and the massive pillars of Stonehenge, man has sought explanations and answers to these mysterious places. The atlas unravels many of the questions that surround these landmarks of past civilizations. It analyzes and interprets the evidence in detail with the up-to-date archaeological material, detective work, and numerous tales and folklore. Maps pinpoint locations in mountains, jungles, deserts, plains and oceans. Also discussed are the many people associated with these sites, from King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table to Thomas Jefferson, who explored the mysterious mounds at Monticello.

The Atlas of Mysterious Places

Politics & Social Sciences

Archaeology

Barnes&Noble Books

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Westwood, Jennifer. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Westwood, Jennifer