Irish Cures, Mystic Charms & Superstitions (Paperback)

~ (Author), Marlene Ekman (Illustrator)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Lady Wilde, mother of famed author Oscar Wilde, over 100 years ago collected these hundreds of archaic cures, spells, homespun proverbs, visionary omens and prophecies. 128 pages, 16 b/w illus., 5 3/8 x 8 1/4.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Sterling (June 30, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806982004
• ISBN-13: 978-0806982007
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #346,016 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Magical Irish Treasure Chest, June 13, 2005

By	Amy "Aimskee" (New York City) - See all my reviews

This book was written by Lady Wilde who was Oscar Wilde's mother, and what a wonderful book it is. Although the book is called Irish Cures, Mystic Charms & Superstitions, it also contains a section of proverbs, information about the fairy race, traditions and the uses of herbs. The writing is beautiful and I can almost hear Gaelic when reading how to cure dropsy or keep a changeling from being substituted for a mother's baby. That this advice was actually used is so mind-opening in this day and age of technology where the cure for everything is probably on cable TV.
Lady Wilde was extremely talented and she collected a multitude of Irish make-believe and folk advice into these priceless pages. It's also a cheerful read for night-time reading. You can pick it up anywhere and find something interesting and amusing.
As I turn off my cell phone and computer, I pick up Lady Wilde's book and put myself in another century and place.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A TRAGEDY ON THIS REMAINS OF ALL HER POWERFUL IRISH NATIONALIST WRITINGS, August 10, 2006

By	C. Scanlon "least helpful reviewer" (among us humans) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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Oscar Wilde's mother was a renowned Irish nationalist writer in her day, and sent her famous son forth as an effective blow against the empire, revealing its corruption perversion and hypocritical shallow cruelty through his own writing until he was finally imprisoned a de facto political prisoner and broken (read his Ballad of Reading Gaol and De Profundis)

Lady Wilde's Ancient Legends so highly praised by Mr. Yeats cannot now be found, nor her other winderful and witty writing, and it is a great loss to our culture and wisdom. We must console ourselves with this slim volume of "Superstitions"

Such is our anglo-owned commercial time . . .

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Charming...., April 21, 2006

By	Cricket on the Hearth "A Fairy Tale of Home" (In a different century.....) - See all my reviews

A grand little book filled with traditonal folk charms, superstitions and other mysterious items. A quaint and well informed read.