The Watkins Book of Scottish Folktales

Explore the Wonder, Wit, and Wildness of Scotland's Folklore

Scotland's folktales are rooted in a powerful oral tradition where imagination, landscape, and language intertwine. In The Watkins Book of Scottish Folktales, the late distinguished folklorist Neil Philip brings together more than 100 stories passed down through generations--from the wild Highlands and Islands to the traditions of the Lowlands.

Through tales of witches, giants, fairies, heroes, and shapeshifters, wander an ancient landscape of cliffs, lochs, and ruins. Meet unforgettable figures such as Kate Crackernuts, the herdsmen of Lochbuie, the Black Laird, the Milk-White Doo, Oisean, MacIain Direach, and the mischievous Whuppity Stoorie.

With a foreword by award-winning novelist, poet, and screenwriter Jenni Fagan, The Watkins Book of Scottish Folktales is a timeless collection for anyone interested in folklore and Scotland's rich cultural history.

Neil Philip is a writer, folklorist, and poet. Among his many books are The Cinderella Story, Mythology (with Philip Wilkinson), The New Oxford Book of Children's Verse, The Tale of Sir Gawain, and The Adventures of Odysseus. Neil has contributed to numerous journals, including The Times and Signal: Approaches to Children's Books, and has also written for stage, screen, and radio. His work has won the Aesop Award of the American Folklore Society and the Literary Criticism Book Award of the Children's Literature Association.