The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries: The Classic Study of Leprechauns, Pixies, and Other Fairy Spirits (Paperback)

~ W.Y. Evans Wentz (Author), Terrance McKenna (Introduction)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Evans-Wentz presents an accurate record of ancestral Celtic devotion about the apparent reality of leprechauns, pixies, elves, fairies and other nature spirits. Not only is this a formal and scholarly study but an educated report of how beliefs became the standards of ancient Pagan magic. We come away with the conclusion that fairies and other such manifestations may be the inhabitants of a more advanced existence that only a few of us can understand. This account combines medieval myths, traditional fairy knowledge, and early Paganism with folk-lore, history, anthropology and psychology to become a narrative which appears too consistent to be the result of an insane distraction. This magnificent book is a very readable collection of anecdotes, interviews, and legends made available to Evans-Wentz who has fashioned them into an essential reference for generations to come. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Citadel (December 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806525797
• ISBN-13: 978-0806525792
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #518,721 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Mother Lode, February 27, 2006

By	Dawn Killen-Courtney (St. Louis Park,, MN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

To think, even Katharine Briggs sites this book! It still seems the best in so many ways, and certainly the broadest, most scholarly, yet open-minded exploration of the whole concept of this place and these beings we usually cannot even see. Evans-Wentz was catching the last of the lore as it was seen and believed in by the old people who would've come of age in the 19th century, since he was recording their stories about 1910, in out of the way places where the inroads of the Industrial Age had not made a permanent home in the mind sets of the country people. There is so much in this one book, it would tax me to list it all; so dive in for yourself and see, and hear the words of the people as Evan-Wentz recorded them. He does it in a way I so admire, though he, as an American, was an outsider coming into this lore, the respect he feels for the knowledge and insights, the values and views of the informants is evident in every line. What a book. W.Y Evans-Wentz was a treasure, a great spiritual pioneer, and I revere his memory and his works.
P.S. I am returning to this review a long time later (Feb.2008) to state I am sorry if I lead anyone to this particular, and evidently, poorly done edition. I was reviewing the book in general, and have no knowledge of the quality of this edition. My edition is from Citadel Press, 1994, their Library of the Mystic Arts. Again, my apologies if I lead anyone astray on this edition. Everything else I said about the book in general still stands!

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Good book, terrible edition, February 29, 2008

By	K. Dowling "celtclergy" (Akron, OH United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries: The Classic Study of Leprechauns, Pixies, and Other Fairy Spirits (Paperback)

Although the original Evans-Wentz book is a good resource, the number of typographical errors in this edition renders it unreadable and in some areas useless. It looks like the text was copied using computer Optical Character Recognition software and the total edit check was a computer spell checker, so whole words of the text have been changed.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countires NuVision publisher, December 18, 2007

By	Luna Scorp "alta93" (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Fairy Faith in Celtic Countries: The Classic Study of Leprechauns, Pixies, and Other Fairy Spirits (Paperback)

This is one of the worst versions of W.Y. Evans-Wentz works. This book is also an insult to the original version. Nearly every page is rife with typos making it difficult to read. Apparently this company either does not have an qualified editors or they fell asleep on the job before they even started.

I would take my money elsewhere and try to find an earlier version if you can.