Donegal Fairy Stories

by Seumas MacManus, Joseph A. Greenleaf (Editor), Frank Ver Beck (Illustrator)

Joseph A. Greenleaf's spirited edition of Donegal Fairy Stories, published by Swordpoint Intercontinental, Ltd.. Ten delightful original Irish fairy tales from County Donegal. Translated from the Irish language by Seumas MacManus and first printed in 1900, this new edition has modern language, punctuation and word usage, digitally enhanced original line drawings, and newly-commissioned, full-colour cover art by Donegal artist John Quigley. Edited by Joseph A. Greenleaf of Malin Head, Co Donegal, all of the original flavor and character of the stories remain, ready to be read to your children and grandchildren. The "wee red man," the talking horses, the two- and three-headed giants, Prince Connal, Jack, Taig the Tailor, Manis the Miller and all the others live once more between the covers. So, light the turf fire, fill your glass, pull up some wee creepie stools and read Donegal Fairy Stories. The years will fall away, and you'll be flying over the castle walls, nine miles high! As Seumas would say, "Ciad and Dark Eye lived a long life and a happy one, and may you and I do the same."

Genres: Ireland, Fiction

148 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1900

About the author

Seumas MacManus was an Irish dramatist, poet, and prolific writer of popular stories, who played an important role in the rise of Irish nationalist literature.

Reviews

[Emmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember checking this book out from the library a TON as a kid. I'm Irish and I love fairy tales, so it was clearly a match made in heaven. I remember really loving the collection, so I thought it would be fun to read it again years later and see if I felt the same as I did before.

I did. I really loved this collection. It was a lot of fun, the stories were engaging, and I had forgotten just about everything, so I got to enjoy every story as though I was reading it for the first time. An excellent set of tales and one that I hope will someday grace my shelves (instead of just the library's).

EDIT 5/10/2023: It now does grace my shelves! What a wonderful development!