I really gotta learn that I don't get on with short story collections. I sort of almost enjoyed a whole two of these stories, and even they weren't good. I'm exhausted by stories about pregnancy and childbirth being the only Universal Womanly Experience and that's a core feature of the majority of these stories (and you'll never guess what core underlying trait isn't in the two I sort of liked). I outright had to skip one of them because while it's clear the author had been going for a voice of

A collection of re-interpreted ancient folk tales, from the British isles— Cornwall, Wales, Fens, Yorkshire etc—written by contemporary authors. These stories were began as podcasts—keeping in mind the iral tradition of storytelling. All stories were atmospheric, with varying strengths of dark themes. Acc to Carolyne Larrington in the introduction, The British and Irish folktale traditions slipped away between the 18th and 19th centuries while other fairytales like the Grimms and Andersens’ with...

If you are a member of Audible you can listen to Hag for free in a podcast like format. I found this from searching for Daisy Johnson as I had liked listening to The Hotel and vaguely recalled Hag: Forgotten Folktales Retold as a Kindle edition. I've quite enjoyed these and I'm glad I listened rather than read them because I might have missed Professor Carolyne Larrington's talks with the authors. Women talking about folklore, without men in some way present- as a questioner, host, or narrator i...

There are stories in here that set my heart pumping. A wonderful collection that shows off some incredible female talent. Even someone not interested in Folklore would enjoy this but I imagine it would boil the piss of a purist. I would rate it five stars if not for the inclusion of Eimear McBride’s The Tale Of Kathleen which is one of the smarmiest, look-how-cleverly-I’m-deconstructing-these-tropes stories I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading.

‘’Human existence so often calls for exploration through the imagination, through metaphors, images, narratives that give shape to emotions and conditions, to our sense of being and our struggles to survive and thrive. The supernatural and inexplicable, the selkie, the boggart, the mermaid, the Green Children and the fairies return then, tapping into a powerful sense of continuity from past into present and onwards into the future. For our everyday is not a disenchanted place, however loudly

Maiden, Mother, Hag. And what a mixed bag!I wanted to love this, oh God, did I. It was Virago and it was a beautiful cover and it was Halloween… so I bought it. And now I have thoughts.This one feels to me as though it was published under some haste. Whilst they do hang together well as a collection, many of the stories have a rather half-baked quality and the links to the original folklore are tenuous and uninspired in places. Natasha Carthew’s contribution in particular - although it may just

“Ohh my darling wee fishie, it’s time to go to bed The fire’s warm, the bed is soft, no worries in your head - “Hag features the re-tellings of dark folktales written by talented women from Daisy Johnson to Eimear McBride. This collection includes an introduction by Carolyne Larrington who is an author and professor of medieval literature at Oxford University. She provides some interesting insight into the original regional folktales. Originally this collection was a published as an Audible podc...

This is a wonderful collection of re-interpreted ancient folk tales, from a feminist perspective, for our more modern era by a range of diverse women authors that include Daisy Johnson, Kirsty Logan, Emma Glass, Eimear McBride, Natasha Carthew, Mahsuda Snaith, Naomi Booth, Liv Little, Imogen Hermes Gowar, and Irenosen Okojie. The dark, gothic influenced, traditional folk tales are sourced from all corners of the British Isles, originating from the oral tradition, and fittingly this collection be...

This collection was born out of a literary experiment curated by Professor Carolyne Larrington. Eight female authors were provided with a British folktale and asked to write a contemporary retelling with a feminist twist. In line with the oral tradition they were inspired by, the stories were first produced as podcasts. Now augmented by two further stories commissioned from Irenosen Okojie and Imogen Hermes Gowar, they are being issued in book form by Virago, the indefatigable publisher of books...

Exploring otherness, identity, faith, religion, gender and sexual trauma, Hag brings together a gripping collection of tales that are unsettlingly timely and wickedly sinister. Each story is inspired by a forgotten folk tale sourced from across the UK by Professor Carolyne Larrington, a specialist in Old Norse and British fairy tales at St John's College, Oxford. Drawn from illuminated manuscripts and other folkloric traditions, these stories have been revised and reimagined by authors local to

An entertaining collection of short stories, modern retellings of folk tales from all parts of the British Isles. As with all story collections there were hits and misses, but I enjoyed the majority of them and I liked that the original tales were included at the end of the book. 3.5 stars rounded up, thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC.

Some general thoughts: these stories are totally accessible even if you have no idea what they are based on (like I did), which I think is no mean feat. For anyone who is interested in the original folk tales: you can find them at the end of the book. Also love the queer elements most of these stories had. Each story reviewed:'A Retelling'-Daisy Johnson3/5 starsThere's nothing wrong with this story, but it didn't particularly excite or amuse me, hence my rating.'Sour Hall'- Naomi Booth4/5 starsI...

3.5/5Here are sisters fighting for the love of the same woman, a pregnant archaeologist unearthing impossible bones, and lost children following you home. A panther runs through the forests of England and pixies prey upon violent men.From the islands of Scotland to the coast of Cornwall, the mountains of Galway to the depths of the Fens, these forgotten folktales howl, cackle, and sing their way into the 21st century, wildly reimagined by some of the most exciting women writing in Britain and Ir...

Over the last few years I have steadily fallen in love with at least one female writer of weird, supernatural, folkish tales. When I saw a collection about folktales including many of them I simply knew I had to get my hands on it. And I can quite thankfully say that these women have only raised the bar with this collection of folk tales. Thanks to Virage, Little Brown and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.What better way to start the new year t...

Reading a collection of short stories can be risky. Fortunately, this collection of dark retellings of British folk tales was perfect. The stories were not only fantastically written, they were also so informative. I'm also so glad I've discovered more authors! I wish I could give this book more than five stars. Little warning, it does contain many triggering topics

Interesting modernist retellings of traditional folk tales. The extra interviews at the end are great at exploring the various themes, origins of stories and authors insight.