Emerald Magic: Great Tales of Irish Fantasy

By Andrew M. Greeley

Book Overview

Though the Emerald Isle is no stranger to tales of the fantastic (everything from the Hound Cuchlain to Darby O'Gill and his leprachaun friends), most of the fantasy works dealing with Ireland have limited themselves to either ancient history/Celtic legends and lore, sentimental tales of wee folk, or ghostly tales of hauntings in old deserted castles. Needless to say, there is more to the history and culture of Ireland than the sort of entertainment fare popularized each year around March 17th. Fantastic Irish Tales will present the entire cavalcade of Eire from its earliest beginnings right up to the current climate that has begotten such popular phenomenons as the rock band U2 and the novels of Roddy Doyle as the backdrop for a collection of all new stories of the fantastic. Given the huge success of such books as "How the Irish Saved Civilization," and Irish themed novels by such authors as Leon Uris, Roddy Doyle, and Thomas Flanagan, there is no doubt to the widespread appeal of this book. Ideal to any fan of Irish books and perfectly timed for the Saint Patrick's Day season, "Fantastic Irish Tales" will be a collection to be treasured and enjoyed.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0765344238
• ISBN13: 9780765344236
• Release Date: February 2005
• Publisher: Tor Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.3" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Learn why the "Little People" are found only in Ireland.

A enchanting collection of short stories all about the little people of Ireland. One of the interesting things about this book is, that not a single one of the writers was actually born in Ireland. That should not come as a total surprise as there are somewhere about 50 million people worldwide who claim Irish ancestry and there are only 5 million people living in Ireland. The reason we find the little people only in Ireland is very simple.The faerie were the moderate middle angels in the time of the great war in heaven between Michael and his angels and Satan and his angels.When the matter was settled,and the "bad angels"were sent away,there was some discussion as to where they should be sent.Since they could no longer remain in heaven,they opted for Ireland.It was,after all,the place on earth most like heaven.They had the Emerald Isle all to themselves until the Celts came,a variety of humans for whom they didn't have much affection,so they retreated to the west of the island and their caves and forts and hills and islands in the river and other hangouts.Their situation was made worse when the monks came and replaced the Druids.The latter were poperly afraid of them,but the Catholic clergy vigorously denied their existance and denounced them from the altars.They decided it was not prudent to take on the priests directly, and withdrew farther into the ground and into mystery and magic. There you have it;and this book is filled with stories of mystery and magic about the;Leprechauns,Pookas,Silkie,Banshees,Faeries,They,The Gentry,The Troop,Bansidhe,Clurichauns,Dullahans,Merrows Fear Gorta,Grogachs,Leanbaitha,The Royal Folk,Fey,Pixies & Nixies,Sheaghshee,ButterSpirits,or as many just call them "They". They are all here to amaze,entertain, scare and yes,even entertain you.

Very Irish & Very Fanciful

I suggest pausing between stories to clear the mind. All the writers bring their own style, but also that Irish lyrical writing. To really savor each one, you need to avoid rushing straight through. Not being well-grounded in all the creatures of Irish folklore, some of the scarier stories surprised me. These are not your Lucky Charm leprechauns.I'd also recommend Norah Roberts'A Little Magic which embraces Irish fantasies with a romantic flair.

A great group of stories

This wonderful book is a collection of some fifteen stories of Irish magic. The authors of the stories are all masters of the writing profession - Tanith Lee, Ray Bradbury, Fred Saberhagen, Morgan Llywelyn, and others. The book is arranged into two groups: The Little People, and Literary Fantastics, but don't imagine that it is quite that clear. The stories all range in setting from the ancient past to the very modern, and each is a masterpiece, ranging from the sad to the heartwarming to the hilarious.As you might expect with an anthology, I found some of the stories to be better than others. I loved Cecilia Dart-Thornton and Jacqueline Carey's stories of ancient times (I always loved the old Irish heroic stories), and also Fred Saberhagen horror story. Those are my three favorites, but my hat is off to Peter Tremayne's story, which juxtaposes the horrors of yesterday with those of today. (I wish I could tell you about it, but that would be spoiling things!)Yep, this is a great group of stories. If you like Irish stories, then you absolutely most get this book. And even if it's just that you like good modern stories of the fantastic, you will love this book. I highly recommend it!

Ah, Irish Magic!

What a lovely book! I gave it as a gift to myself, because Father Greeley is one of my guilty pleasures. I have always been a huge fan of the work of Charles De Lint, and the Butter Spirit's tithe was a great read, very fun. Likewise Elizabeth Haydon, whose prose has always reminded me a little bit of William Butler Yeats, infuses her charming take with the poetry only found in Irish blood. Judith Tarr, an author I had not read before, also impressed me favorably.There is not a truly bad story in here, though I thought the Carey and Yolen tales could have been a bit better told. But all in all, this is a wonderful collection for anyone who enjoys great storytelling, a great variety of interpretation, and magic.