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Books > Fiction > Genre fiction > Myth & legend told as fiction
Brer Rabbit is causing trouble again for his fellow creatures Brer
Fox, Brer Wolf, Brer Bear and others. Within this edition Birch
Tree Publishing brings together all the stories and original
artwork of this classic tale gathered together in one volume. The
result is a treasure of a volume that will delight all ages, and
belongs on every book-she
Available for the first time in paperback, this is the pre-eminent
critical study, and exploration, of how myth and legend played such
a significant role in the works of J.R.R. Tolkien. The Song of
Middle-earth takes a fresh look at The Lord of the Rings, digging
deep into the foundations of Tolkien's world to reveal the complex
tapestry of history and mythology that lies behind his stories. The
charge that Tolkien's work was merely derivative - that he
extracted elements from other mythologies and incorporated them
into his own fiction - is dismissed in favour of a fascinating
examination of the rich historical background to Middle-earth. From
the mythic tradition of the Tales told in The Book of Lost Tales: I
to the significance of oral storytelling throughout the history of
Middle-earth, this book examines the common themes of mythology
found within Tolkien's work. In doing so, The Song of Middle-earth
demonstrates how Tolkien's desire to create a new mythology for
England is not only apparent in his writing, but also realised.
This is a mixture of folk-tale, magic, myth, love story and hymn of
praise to the natural world of Scotland's high and low lands, their
landscapes and creatures, and the poet-guardians who timelessly
maintain their care for them. It is the legend-story of the
mysterious Wanderer, who comes from the North to Striveling
(Stirling) and its great Castle Rock, and the tales he tells to the
five men and a woman who befriend him there. Who is this Wanderer,
who seems ageless, who has profound affinities with animals and
birds, who can take on the shape of swans and what is his mission
to the South? Who are these friends, whose friendship becomes more,
as they begin to realize that they are part of the strange,
timeless and mythic destiny of a country older than civilization?
What is the meaning of the unearthly love of the Wanderer and the
mysterious Bella?
Become enchanted by the fantasy world of gods and mortals in
bestselling author Scarlett St. Clair's reimagined New Greece.
Readers are "hopelessly addicted" to the story of Hades and
Persephone told from Hades's point of view. Hades, God of the Dead,
does not take sides or bend the rules. He makes no exceptions to
these values-not for god or mortal, even his lover, Persephone,
Goddess of Spring. Usually, fear prevents retaliation. But not this
time. When Hera, Goddess of Women, approaches Hades with a plan to
overthrow Zeus, he declines to offer help. As punishment, Hera
sentences Hades to perform a series of labors. Each feat seems more
impossible than the last and draws his attention away from
Persephone-whose own tragedy has left her questioning whether she
can be Queen of the Underworld. Can Hades maintain the balance he
craves?
'Infused with the spirit of Jane Eyre, Rebecca and The Woman in White'
- Independent
'I was completely spellbound' - Ruth Hogan
'A delight...I devoured it' - Jo Baker
'Truly extraordinary' - Dinah Jeffries
Some say the river drowned her...Some say it brought her back to life
On a dark midwinter’s night in an ancient inn on the Thames, the
regulars are entertaining themselves by telling stories when the door
bursts open and in steps an injured stranger. In his arms is the
drowned corpse of a child.
Hours later, the dead girl stirs, takes a breath and returns to life.
Is it a miracle?
Is it magic?
And who does the little girl belong to?
An exquisitely crafted multi-layered mystery brimming with folklore,
suspense and romance, as well as with the urgent scientific curiosity
of the Darwinian age, Once Upon a River is as richly atmospheric as
Setterfield’s bestseller The Thirteenth Tale.
"Diane's masterful storytelling draws you in to a beguiling tale, full
of twists and turns like the river at its heart, and just as rich and
intriguing." (M L Stedman, bestselling author of The Light Between
Oceans)
“Swift and entrancing, profound and beautiful. Give yourself a treat
and read it!" (Madeline Miller, Orange Prize-winning author of The Song
of Achilles and Circe)
*** ONE OF THE OBSERVER'S 10 MUST-READ DEBUT NOVELISTS OF 2022 ***
'A rare glimpse into the harsh realities of street life and love in
luminous prose, rendered with sensitivity and without
sentimentalism. An astonishing debut' Cherie Jones, author of HOW
THE ONE-ARMED SISTER SWEEPS HER HOUSE Sayon Hughes, a young Black
man from Bristol, dreams of a world far removed from the one in
which he was raised. Far removed from the torn slips outside the
bookie's, the burnt spoons and the crooked solutions his community
embraces; most of all, removed from the Christianity of his
uncaring parents and the prejudice of law-makers. Growing up, Sayon
found respite from the chaos of his environment in the love and
loyalty of his brother-in-arms, Cuba; in the example of his cousin
Hakim, a man once known as the most infamous drug-dealer in their
neighbourhood, now a proselytising Muslim; and in the tenderness of
his girl, Shona, whose own sense of purpose galvanises Sayon's. In
return, Sayon wants to give the people he loves the world: a house
atop a grand hill in the most affluent area of the city, a home in
which they can forever find joy and safety. But after an
altercation in which a boy is killed, Sayon finds his loyalties
torn and his dream of a better life in peril. MORE PRAISE FOR AN
OLIVE GROVE IN ENDS: 'A remarkable debut, bristling with sharp
prose and daring originality' Nathan Harris, author of THE
SWEETNESS OF WATER 'A phenomenally good novel, tense and thrilling
and complex, with breath-stealing moments on every page' Donal
Ryan, author of STRANGE FLOWERS 'This consummately crafted work can
only be a harbinger of a stellar and truly significant career. I
urge you to read it' Patrick McCabe, author of THE BUTCHER BOY
'Engrossing . . . A tough yet tender story of faith and friendship'
OBSERVER
'It's virtually impossible to read more than ten words by Neil
Gaiman and not wish he would tell you the rest of the story'
OBSERVER A box set collection of five iconic novels by Neil Gaiman.
NEVERWHERE. STARDUST. AMERICAN GODS. ANANSI BOYS. THE OCEAN AT THE
END OF THE LANE. -- NEIL GAIMAN. WITH STORIES COME POSSIBILITIES.
'To give him his full title: Neil Gaiman, Architect of Worlds,
Svengali of Plot, Shaman of Character, Exploder of Cliche, Master
Craftsman of Style, Dreamer Laureate of the Republic of Letters'
DAVID MITCHELL 'Beyond all the borders that divide us, there is a
place of infinite possibilities and pure magic. I think of Neil
Gaiman as a writer who wears the key to that land around his neck -
the key to Storyland' ELIF SHAFAK -- NEVERWHERE: Under the streets
of London lies a world most people could never dream of. And for
Richard Mayhew, it's just the beginning. STARDUST: Young Tristran
Thorn goes over his town's ancient wall into the mysterious land of
Faerie - a world that is dangerous and strange beyond imagining . .
. AMERICAN GODS: A profoundly strange American road trip. War is
coming, and Shadow Moon is standing squarely in its path. ANANSI
BOYS: Everything changes for Fat Charlie Nancy, the South London
boy so called by his father, the day his dad drops dead while doing
karaoke. THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE: The recollections of a
man who thought he was lost but is now, perhaps, remembering a time
when he was saved . . . Details Box set of five Neil Gaiman novels
Bespoke matt laminated and spot varnished slipcase
Everyone knows that if you fall afoul of the People, you must
travel the miles to Gyrford, where uncounted generations of
fairy-smiths have protected the county with cold iron, good counsel
and unvarnished opinions about your common sense. But shielding the
weak from the strong can make enemies. Ephraim Brady has money and
power, and the bitter will to hurt those who cross him. And if he
can't touch elder farrier Jedediah Smith, he can harm those the
Smiths care about. The Smiths care about Tobias Ware, born on a
night when the blazing fey dog Black Hal roared past the Wares'
gate. Tobias doesn't understand the language or laws of men, and he
can't keep away from the Bellame woods, where trespass is a hanging
offence. If Toby is to survive, he needs protection. It should be a
manageable job. Jedediah Smith has a head on his shoulders, and so
too (mostly) does his son Matthew. Only Matthew's son John has
turned out a little . . . uncommon. But he means well. It wasn't
his fault the bramble bush put on a berry-head and started taking
offence. Or that Tobias upset it. But John's not yet learned that
if you follow the things other folk don't see, they might drag
those you love into the path of ruin.
How did a tiny wren manage to be crowned King of the Birds? Why did
giant Finn McCool's favourite dogs change into mountains? What
happened to turn a friendly cat into a cruel fiend who plotted to
destroy mankind? Irish Animal Tales for Children is packed with
ghostly goings-on, weird characters and wonderful animals.
Irreverently told by award-winning storyteller Doreen McBride,
these stories are not for the faint of heart!
From Bernard Cornwell, the creator of the No. 1 bestselling Sharpe
novels. Arthur has brought a fragile peace to Britain - but it
cannot last . . . Uniting the restive British kingdoms behind him,
Arthur believes he can now hold back the Saxons threatening the
country. Meanwhile, Merlin sets out on a quest to uncover the
sacred Treasures of Britain, hoping they will prove decisive in the
coming battle. But in a country where the cult of the Christians is
spreading, Merlin's quest is divisive. And the ambitions of the
rival warlord Lancelot threaten the delicate peace. Could even
those closest to Arthur be moved to betray him? In the second book
of the Warlord Chronicles, Bernard Cornwell brilliantly retells the
Arthurian legend, combining myth, history and thrilling battlefield
action. 'Wonderful and haunting' People Magazine 'Of all the books
I have written these are my favourites' Bernard Cornwell
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Beren and Luthien
(Paperback)
J. R. R. Tolkien; Edited by Christopher Tolkien
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R270
R216
Discovery Miles 2 160
Save R54 (20%)
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Ships in 5 - 10 working days
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Painstakingly restored from Tolkien's manuscripts and presented for
the first time as a continuous and standalone story, the epic tale
of Beren and Luthien will reunite fans of The Hobbit and The Lord
of the Rings with Elves and Men, Dwarves and Orcs and the rich
landscape and creatures unique to Tolkien's Middle-earth. The tale
of Beren and Luthien was, or became, an essential element in the
evolution of The Silmarillion, the myths and legends of the First
Age of the World conceived by J.R.R. Tolkien. Returning from France
and the battle of the Somme at the end of 1916, he wrote the tale
in the following year. Essential to the story, and never changed,
is the fate that shadowed the love of Beren and Luthien: for Beren
was a mortal man, but Luthien was an immortal Elf. Her father, a
great Elvish lord, in deep opposition to Beren, imposed on him an
impossible task that he must perform before he might wed Luthien.
This is the kernel of the legend; and it leads to the supremely
heroic attempt of Beren and Luthien together to rob the greatest of
all evil beings, Melkor, called Morgoth, the Black Enemy, of a
Silmaril. In this book Christopher Tolkien has attempted to extract
the story of Beren and Luthien from the comprehensive work in which
it was embedded; but that story was itself changing as it developed
new associations within the larger history. To show something of
the process whereby this legend of Middle-earth evolved over the
years, he has told the story in his father's own words by giving,
first, its original form, and then passages in prose and verse from
later texts that illustrate the narrative as it changed. Presented
together for the first time, they reveal aspects of the story, both
in event and in narrative immediacy, that were afterwards lost.
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Ithaca
(Hardcover)
Claire North
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R771
R650
Discovery Miles 6 500
Save R121 (16%)
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Ships in 10 - 15 working days
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Telling the Seasons takes us on a journey through the twelve months
of the year with stories, customs and celebrations. Drawing on the
changing patterns of nature and the rich tapestry of folklore from
the British Isles, it is a colourful guide into how and why we
continue to celebrate the seasons. Here are magical myths of the
sun and moon, earthy tales of walking stones and talking trees and
lively legends of the spirits of each season. Original drawings,
sayings, songs, recipes and rhymes, combine into a 'spell-book' of
the seasons. Martin Maudsley tells tales around the year to
children and adults, specialising in stories of the natural world
and local landscapes. He can be found leading seasonal celebrations
from firelit winter wassails to bright May Day mornings in rural
Dorset where he lives.
First published in 1953, this translation of part of the Arabian
Nights by A. J. Arberry offers four famous stories in modern idiom:
Aladdin, Judar, Aboukir and Abousir, and the Amorous Goldsmith. The
introduction provides a brief analysis of earlier translations of
the tales and explains their value as indicators of the society in
which they were written. This work will be of interest to those
studying Middle-Eastern literature and history.
This first English translation of Sholom Aleichem's rediscovered
novel, Moshkeleh the Thief, has a riveting plot, an unusual love
story, and a keenly observed portrayal of an underclass Jew replete
with characters never before been seen in Yiddish literature. The
eponymous hero, Moshkeleh, is a robust chap and horse thief. When
Tsireleh, daughter of a tavern keeper, flees to a monastery with
the man she loves-a non-Jew she met at the tavern-the humiliated
tavern keeper's family turns to Moshkeleh for help, not knowing he
too is in love with her. For some unknown reason, this innovative
novel does not appear in the standard twenty-eight-volume edition
of Sholom Aleichem's collected works, published after his death.
Strikingly, Moshkeleh the Thief shows Jews interacting with
non-Jews in the Russian Pale of Settlement-a groundbreaking theme
in modern Yiddish literature. This novel is also important for
Sholom Aleichem's approach to his material. Yiddish literature had
long maintained a tradition of edelkeyt, refinement. Authors
eschewed violence, the darker side of life, and people on the
fringe of respectability. Moshkeleh thus enters a Jewish arena not
hitherto explored in a novel.
Neil Gaiman, long inspired by ancient mythology in creating the
fantastical realms of his fiction, presents a bravura rendition of
the Norse gods and their world from their origin though their
upheaval in Ragnarok. In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the
myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of
the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin's son, incredibly
strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki-son of a giant-blood
brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator.
Gaiman fashions these primeval stories into a novelistic arc that
begins with the genesis of the legendary nine worlds and delves
into the exploits of deities, dwarfs, and giants. Through Gaiman's
deft and witty prose, these gods emerge with their fiercely
competitive natures, their susceptibility to being duped and to
duping others, and their tendency to let passion ignite their
actions, making these long-ago myths breathe pungent life again.
Jedediah's father walked out of his life forty years ago. Now he's
back. He won't apologise, he doesn't explain - and, impossibly, he
hasn't aged a day. If you asked the folks of Gyrford, they'd tell
you Jedediah Smith looked up to his father. After all, Corbie
Mackem was the Sarsen Shepherd: the man who saved the Smith clan
from Ab, the terrifyingly well-meaning fey who blighted a whole
generation with unwanted gifts. Corbie was a good fairy-smith. And
if he wasn't a good father, well, that isn't something Jedediah
likes to talk about. Especially since no one knows where Corbie's
body lies: the day of his son's wedding, forty-odd years ago, he
set off to travel and was never seen again. These days Jedediah is
a respectable elder, more concerned with his wayward grandson John
than with his long-buried past, and he has other problems on his
mind. There's the preparations for Saint Clement's Day, and the odd
fact that birds all over the county have taken to hiding
themselves, and the misbehaviour of Left-Lop the pig - which has
grown vegetation all over its back, escaped its farm and taken to
making personal remarks at folks in alarmingly alliterative verse.
But then disaster strikes. Ab is back. And Corbie, thought long
dead, returns to Gyrford - younger than his son . . .
Introduced by Patricia Lockwood: Gothic tales from the mistress of
the weird behind frogman-romance Mrs Caliban for fans of Shirley
Jackson, Lucia Berlin and Patricia Highsmith. 'Wonderful.' Margaret
Atwood 'Genius.' Patricia Lockwood 'Remarkable.' Joseph Heller
'Perfect.' Max Porter ''Immensely skillful'. Ursula K. Le Guin
'Tender, erotic, singular.' Carmen Maria Machado 'Still outpaces,
out-weirds, and out-romances anything today.' Marlon James 'One of
the greatest short story writers we have.' The Times 'You are in
masterly hands as Ingalls lures you into a swamp of violence and
magic.' Sunday Times After a one-night-stand with the Angel
Gabriel, a monk is transformed into a pregnant woman. Lost in the
fog, two visitors are lured into a ruined candlelit mansion. A wife
confiscates her husband's homemade sex doll, only to demand her
own. Great-aunts warn of the deadly skin of the pearlkillers.
Rachel Ingalls' incomparable novellas are masterpieces: surrealist,
subversive, tragicomic. Prepare to meet what lurks beneath .
'Macabre, fantastic and haunting . . . One of the most brilliant
practitioners of American Gothic since Poe . . . Read her at your
peril.' Independent 'Fables whose unadorned sentences belie their
irreducible strangeness . . . In her vision of intimacy and
interdependence, you're simply not safe until everybody else is
dead . . . Brilliant.' New Yorker 'Resists definition . . . Her
work combines subtlety and horror, magic and stark realism, Greek
tragedy and happily-ever-afters . . . Rare and fine. ' Guardian
'Idiosyncratic, haunting, masterly . . . A modern fabulist making
myths which explode into strangeness.' Observer
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