Scottish Traveller Tales

Scottish Traveller Tales PDF

Author: Donald Braid

Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi

Published: 2002

Total Pages: 336

ISBN-13: 9781578064502

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The only book that closely examines this fascinating storytelling culture of Scotland

Jack and the Devil's Purse

Jack and the Devil's Purse PDF

Author: Duncan Williamson

Publisher: Birlinn

Published: 2011-05-01

Total Pages: 221

ISBN-13: 0857900536

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Devil stories are always fascinating, entertaining and disturbing. These twenty tales, re-told by one of Scotland's master storytellers, are a fascinating insight into Traveller beliefs about evil, temptation and suffering in which the Devil exists not to punish, but to outwit you in a contest of intelligence and knowledge. This collection is an expanded edition of Duncan Williamson's best-selling May the Devil Walk Behind Ye!, originally published by Canongate.

The King And The Lamp

The King And The Lamp PDF

Author: Duncan Williamson

Publisher: Canongate Books

Published: 2010-07-01

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 1847675050

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Introduced by Barbara McDermitt The telling of tales and the oral tradition in Scotland has long and honourable history, both in the annals of the folk and in the more formal pages of literary publication. Writers as different as Hogg, Scott, Stevenson, Cunninghame Graham, Buchan, Grassic Gibbon and Alasdair Gray have all drawn on the form or the voice or the features of the folk tale. Duncan Williamson, arguably the greatest traditional tale teller in modern times, is a master of this spellbinding art, and here in a single volume Linda Williamson has gathered together some of the most memorable tales in his repertoire. Transcribed from recorded sessions for the sound archives of the School of Scottish Studies, these twenty-six stories give us privileged access to the travellers’ fireside with stories of talking animals; of the broonie, selkies and fairies; of cunning Jack’s adventures; of kings and giants in long tales for the winter nights. ‘An extraordinary collection of stories.’ The Scotsman ‘Exemplary and delightful . . . [Williamson] is the inheritor of a rich and vital oral tradition . . . and is recognised as a master narrator.’ Times Educational Supplement ‘ . . . the bearer of the richest oral tradition in Europe.’ Herald

Way of the Wanderers

Way of the Wanderers PDF

Author: Jess Smith

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2012-11-05

Total Pages: 355

ISBN-13: 0857905651

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A “vigorous and vivid and feisty” portrait of a traditional Scottish subculture from an insider (Dundee Courier & Advertiser). Scottish gypsies, known as travellers, have wandered Scotland’s roads and byways for centuries, and their turbulent history is captured in this passionate book by Jess Smith, the bestselling author of Jessie’s Journey. This is less a conventional history than a personal pilgrimage through the stories, songs, and culture of a people for whom freedom is more important than security and a campfire under the stars is preferable to a warm hearth within stone walls. Settled society has always discriminated against travellers, and Jess tells shocking stories of bullying, violence, the enforced break-up of families, and separate schooling. But drawing on her own and her family’s experiences, she also captures the magic and drama of days wandering the roads and working the land, and brings to life the travellers’ rich and vibrant traditions.

Jack and the Devil's Purse

Jack and the Devil's Purse PDF

Author: Duncan Williamson

Publisher: Birlinn Limited

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13: 9781841589510

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Devil stories are always fascinating, entertaining and disturbing. These twenty tales, re-told by one of Scotland's master storytellers, are a fascinating insight into Traveller beliefs about evil, temptation and suffering in which the Devil exists not to punish, but to outwit you in a contest of intelligence and knowledge. This collection is an expanded edition of Duncan Williamson's best-selling May the Devil Walk Behind Ye!, originally published by Canongate.

Fireside Tales of the Traveller Children

Fireside Tales of the Traveller Children PDF

Author: Duncan Williamson

Publisher: Birlinn Ltd

Published: 2017-07-05

Total Pages: 203

ISBN-13: 0857909592

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Duncan Williamson was a Scottish traveller who went on to become one of Britain's master story-tellers. During his lifetime he was acclaimed 'the greatest English-speaking storyteller', 'the national monument of British storytelling' and, at his death, Scotland's 'greatest contemporary storyteller'. Fireside Tales, his first book, reveals this artistry and mastery in all its glory. This new edition is edited by his wife, Linda Williamson. Fireside Tales is narrated with an intense commitment to generations of the travelling people, who used animal fables, wonder tales and splendid horror stories to instil in their children moral judgment and a knowledge of right and wrong. At every corner the technical skill of the narrator is revealed, his ingenious mixture of conversation and action, frequent change of pace, use of the first person – all attributes of the born storyteller which compel attention, where tension and excitement are at fever pitch throughout. With a universality that can relate to every reader, this book represents one of the great collections of traveller stories.

Sookin' Berries

Sookin' Berries PDF

Author: Jess Smith

Publisher: Casemate Publishers

Published: 2013-07-12

Total Pages: 170

ISBN-13: 0857907476

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Stories learned while growing up on an old blue bus wandering through Scotland, for readers of all ages who love travel and adventure. I have been a gatherer of tales for most of my life, and I suppose it all began when I was a wee girl. I shared a home with parents, seven sisters and a shaggy dog. It could be said that I lived a different sort of life from most other children, because “home” was an old blue bus. We were known as tinkers or travellers, descendants of those who have wandered the highways and byways of Scotland for two thousand years . . . In this book, the author of the autobiographical trilogy Jessie’s Journey is on a mission to pass on the stories she heard as a girl to the young readers of today. With these ancient oral tales of Scotland’s travelling people, she invites readers to come with her on the road, back to those days when it was time to pack up and get going, and to take the way of her ancestors. Reading this book is like being by the campfire listening to the magical Scottish stories that have been handed down through generations.

The Flight of the Golden Bird

The Flight of the Golden Bird PDF

Author: Duncan Williamson

Publisher: Floris Books

Published: 2013-08-22

Total Pages: 113

ISBN-13: 1782500278

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Duncan Williamson, one of Scotland's Travelling People, has been celebrated as the bearer of Scotland's greatest national treasure: the richest trove of story and song in Europe. In this collection, he passes on some of these wonderful children's folk and fairy tales, collected from sixty years of travelling around Scotland. This collection includes stories about silver horses and golden birds, cunning lions and trilling nightingales, brave princesses and magic scarecrows, the four seasons and old Father Time. At the heart of each story is a lesson about life and what it means to be a good person. The stories have been written down as faithfully as possible to Duncan's unique storytelling voice, full of colour, humour and life.

Tales of the Seal People

Tales of the Seal People PDF

Author: Duncan Williamson

Publisher: Interlink Publishing Group

Published: 1992

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9780940793996

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A collection of 14 selkie (half-seal half-human creatures) tales from the Orkney and Shetland islands off the northern tip of Scotland which embrace the fantasy, romance and unusual perspective of the Scottish travellers.